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Wittgenstein and China

By:Li Guoshan, Lu YukunFrom:Social Sciences Weekly2019-7-26 17:01

Wittgenstein never came to China, but his teacher and friend Russell did. Moreover, Russell stayed for ten whole months. It can be argued that Russell brought Wittgenstein along the trip, as he accepted a request from Wittgenstein that he has yet fulfilled: publish Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. Prior to the trip, he had already written an extended introduction for this miniature book and sought out the support of many others, but with no discernible result. Yet, a promise made should be a promise kept. Before he arrived in China in September of 1920, he requested a lady to continue seeking supporters for this book.

There is another significance when one says that Russell brought Wittgenstein to China: through Russell, Chinese academic circles first encountered Wittgenstein Philosophy. The incident below perfectly illustrates this fact: Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus’s German-English bilingual edition is published by Rutledge Publishing Company in 1922, the next translated edition is actually a Chinese translated version published by Mr. Zhang Shen Fu in 1927, and the other major Western translations only came after 1950! The keen intuition of Chinese scholars surely benefits from Russell and his introduction. Wittgenstein might be surprised that the sole philosophical masterpiece published in his lifetime can be favored by Chinese scholars at such an early stage.

The elegant translated title Mr. Zhang Shen Fu adopted was名理论. The book was later revised by Mr. Chen Qi Wei, and a new edition is published by Peking University in 1988. Adding to The Commercial Press’s four other translated editions of Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, there now exist a total of five versions of this work. Besides of these, Wittgenstein’s other important work Philosophical Investigation also has five different translated editions in Chinese. It is worth mentioning that Wright’s translation of Culture and Value and Malcolm’s Ludwig Wittgenstein: A Memoir-- with a Biographical Sketch by Wright were both translated into Chinese in 1980, allowing more readers to understand his character and ideology.

Using language to discuss existentialism, cognition, and values is a major trend in Western philosophy, and Wittgenstein is definitely a talented trendsetter. So how does this discussion relate to China? Wittgenstein introduced the picture theory of language regarding the meaning of propositions in Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus and pointed out: “In order to understand the essence of the proposition, consider hieroglyphic writing, which pictures the facts it describes. – And alphabetic script developed out of it without losing what was essential to depiction.” Although it cannot be certain that Wittgenstein thought of Chinese characters in relation to what he stated, the box letters we have been using for thousands of years are indeed based on hieroglyphics. One can say that using the hieroglyphical traits of language to speculate over the world, the society, and life problems is a specialty of the academic circle of Chinese characters. As a result, the inference Wittgenstein made above can perhaps give us some helpful insight regarding philosophical discussions.

Besides the topic of Chinese characters being hieroglyphics, we can also infer from one of Wittgenstein’s comments his interest of Chinese as a special form of language. He wrote in his notebook: “If we hear a Chinese, we tend to take his speech for inarticulate gurgling. Someone who understands Chinese will recognize language in what he hears. Similarly, I often cannot recognize the human being in someone.” This quote contains a deep significance. As we know, Chinese has always been seen as the most incomprehensible language by the Western world, and it even came to signify obscure phenomenon. On the surface, there is the divergence in the pronunciations and characters. Behind this exists the cultural contrast and the deep difference in thought process and world view. Communal understanding and conversations must originate from the mutual comprehension of languages. It is difficult to erase the gap between East and West without understanding the Chinese language. Since Wittgenstein comes from a standpoint similar to that of cultural relativism, he both respects cultural differences and seeks family resemblance between various cultures. In doing so, communication and cooperation can be better realized.

One hundred years in the past, generations of scholars followed the footsteps of Zhang Shen Fu, Hong Qian, Jin Yue Lin, Fong You Lan, Zhang Dai and other predecessors to ceaselessly translate and research Wittgenstein’s philosophical masterpiece. Since the 80s, Wittgenstein has become one of the most acclaimed Western philosophers, which led to the production of ample and thorough research results. The “Wittgenstein Professional Committee of Philosophy,” formed in 2015, became the first Level II academic committee named after a Western philosopher and attracted a multitude of scholars to its biennial assemblies. Besides peers in philosophy, many scholars of linguistics, logic, arts, and other fields of studies also actively participate in the committee. The discussion topics cover the philosophy of language, the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of mathematics, the science of epistemology, ethics, aesthetics, and other fields as well. Heated discussions are being held till this day.

One hundred and thirty years ago, Wittgenstein was born. The lifeline of his philosophy lasted for more than a century and remains vital still today. Does his humble and contemplative nature make him resemble a traditional Chinese philosopher? Two years ago, the famed sinologist Mr. An Lezhe said that he would institute a comparative course of Wittgenstein and Confucius in Peking University. Perhaps the course is already established now. There is no reason that would not be popular.