Ludwig Wittgenstein was an Austrian-British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. He was one of the leading figures in 20th century analytic philosophy.
Philosopher was born in Vienna, Austria in 1889 to a wealthy family. His father Karl Wittgenstein was an industrialist who amassed a great fortune through his steelworks company. His mother Leopoldine came from a wealthy Jewish banking family. The Wittgensteins were a close-knit family with a strong emphasis placed on education and intellectual pursuits.
Actually, Wittgenstein was initially interested in engineering but soon became interested in philosophy after reading Russell’s Principles of Mathematics and Frege’s Grundgesetze der Arithmetik (Basic Laws of Arithmetic). He then studied for three years at Manchester University before returning to Cambridge University where he studied under Bertrand Russell. In 1911, he went to Vienna where he continued his studies until 1914 when he volunteered for military service during World War I. He served with an artillery regiment until 1916 when he was discharged due to health reasons. It was during this time that he wrote his first book Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus which appeared in 1921 after being rejected by publishers for its controversial ideas about language.
Wittgenstein’s most influential contributions were in the area of philosophy of language. He made several attempts to solve both philosophical problems and the problems of everyday life by using his own special method.
