Wittgenstein: time for a new philosophical practice

Abstract

This essay gathers Wittgenstein's comments and considerations concerning the philosophical investigation of time. Time here serves as an exemplary instance of Wittgenstein's manner of philosophical critique and his turn to a new practice of philosophy. His comments on time demonstrate this two-fold movement. On the one hand, he concerns himself with pointing out the“wrong turns”philosophers take when they ask:“What is time?”These include a semantic error, the over reliance on figurative language, the felt need for definitions, and a mistaken assumption about the task of philosophy that underlies these problems. On the other hand, he concerns himself with dwelling upon and describing time as an intricate and dynamic interweaving, a manifold and ongoing entanglement of human practices.