If we spoke a different language, we would perceive a somewhat different world.
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent.
Interpretation
What this quote means
We should remain silent about things that cannot be expressed clearly.
This quote by Ludwig Wittgenstein emphasizes the limits of language and understanding. It suggests that when a topic is beyond our ability to articulate or comprehend, it is wiser to refrain from discussing it, acknowledging that some aspects of existence may be too complex or profound to be captured through words.
Themes
SilenceLanguageUnderstandingPhilosophyCommunication
In practice
Example use cases
During a philosophical debate where complex topics arise, this quote can be referenced to highlight the challenges of articulating profound ideas.
More from Ludwig Wittgenstein
All quotes βOne cannot guess how a word functions. One has to look at its use and learn from that. But the difficulty is to remove the prejudice which stands in the way of doing this. It is not a stupid prejudice.
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
No one likes having offended another person; hence everyone feels so much better if the other person doesn't show he's been offended. Nobody likes being confronted by a wounded spaniel. Remember that. It is much easier patiently - and tolerantly - to avoid the person you have injured than to approach him as a friend. You need courage for that.
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
It's impossible for me to say one word about all that music has meant to me in my life. How, then, can I hope to be understood?
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
Nothing is so difficult as not deceiving oneself.
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
My day passes between logic, whistling, going for walks, and being depressed. I wish to God that I were more intelligent and everything would finally become clear to me - or else that I needn't live much longer.
Ludwig WittgensteinRead
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People go to Africa and confirm what they already have in their heads and so they fail to see what is there in front of them. This is what people have come to expect. Its not viewed as a serious continent. Its a place of strange, bizarre and illogical things, where people dont do what common sense demands.
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It isn't only in the name of free speech that the views of an itchy polemicist should be tolerated - and I say itchy polemicist promoting thought, not itchy ideologue promoting violence - but because provocation is indispensable to the workings of a sound, creative culture.
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