One of the most thought-provoking books I’ve ever read is truly a remarkable piece of literature.

It has the power to make you stop and reflect on various aspects of life, society, and human nature.

The author’s unique perspective and writing style draw you in from the very beginning and keep you engaged until the very end.

Each page is filled with profound insights and ideas that challenge your preconceived notions and force you to look at the world in a different light.

Whether it’s a fictional story or a non-fiction work, this book has the ability to touch your heart and mind in ways you never thought possible.

It makes you question what you believe, what you value, and what you strive for in life.

Overall, it is a book that will stay with you long after you’ve turned the last page and continue to influence your thoughts and actions for years to come.

This book contains 676 unedited and uncorrected notes, and some of them are even incomplete, and Wittgenstein has not had the opportunity to review them.

For this reason, there are many repetitions and ambiguities in the book.

The unedited nature of these notes may lead to challenges for readers trying to understand Wittgenstein's thoughts. The incompleteness of some of the notes might leave gaps in the overall picture.

However, despite these flaws, the book still offers valuable insights into Wittgenstein's thinking process. It allows us to see how his ideas developed and evolved over time.

Perhaps future scholars will have the opportunity to further analyze and clarify these notes, shedding more light on Wittgenstein's profound philosophy.

I’m not entirely certain how I feel about this book. What I mean more precisely is that it is truly impossible for me to be certain how I feel about this book. In fact, according to Mr. Ludvig Wittgenstein, it’s impossible for me to really be certain of anything whatsoever.

On Certainty was a rather enjoyable read despite containing 676 numbered paragraphs of somewhat repetitive analysis. But if one is as fascinated by philosophy as I am, then it’s no bother. Some would say Wittgenstein is a philosopher’s philosopher as he spends much of his effort debunking traditional philosophy. Here’s what I can tease out of this text:

All things we are certain of, including science, are part of a world-view. World-views are based on language and language games. All the things we consider “certain” are actually premises for our language games. In other words, every fact we’re sure of points back to assumptions of the language game. Certainty is constructed meaning, not objective meaning.

Certainty has no ground. If you say, “I know the earth is round,” it’s just a statement of your relation to an accepted world view, not a factual ground. All our grounds are merely hardened propositions.

He also compares the world views of different societies. In some tribal society, the shaman may be thought to cause rain. Are they wrong? Maybe, but what if cause and effect were wrong? Scientific evidence is based on cause and effect, but it’s impossible to objectively demonstrate it. The future can’t be predicted. Science can change its worldview, and then the facts that were our ground are no longer. There is no objective ground, no certainty.

Some claim Wittgenstein debunks skepticism, but I don’t see that. He seems like the ultimate skeptic to me. You just need to reword the questions. So how can we be certain of anything?