New Books in Literary Studies cover image

Toril Moi, "Revolution of the Ordinary: Literary Studies After Wittgenstein, Austin, and Cavell" (U Chicago Press, 2017)

New Books in Literary Studies

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How to Learn to Speak

Wittgenstein says we learn to speak by pointing at things and muttering sounds. He then gives a counter example, which is so simple that you would think it would work for Augustine. Wittgenstein: There's something we already know how to do but long before we can name anything. And the knowledge of counting is something that is not just a matter of learning numerals. If you live in a society where they don't know how to count and there are no rules about what words should be used, this doesn't make sense.

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