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Kripke's Wittgenstein

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This book offers a comprehensive examination of Kripke’s influential reading of the later Wittgenstein presented in Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language (1982), together with the principal ob...
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  • 05 May 2026
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This book offers a comprehensive examination of Kripke’s influential reading of the later Wittgenstein presented in Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language (1982), together with the principal objections raised by more than twenty philosophers. It introduces the key ideas that frame Kripke’s sceptical challenge, then analyses the main components of the ‘sceptical argument’ Kripke attributes to Wittgenstein and elucidates the ‘sceptical solution’ he takes Wittgenstein to propose as an alternative to classical realism. It also explores how both the sceptical problem and an additional ‘special problem’ arise in the attributing sensations and in traditional approaches to the problem of other minds. The concluding chapters survey the major responses to Kripke’s interpretation developed by philosophers working on the topic since the 1980s, including John McDowell, Simon Blackburn, Gordon Baker, Peter Hacker, Colin McGinn, Crispin Wright, Paul Boghossian, Philip Pettit, Barry Stroud, Hannah Ginsborg, Alexander Miller, George Wilson, Scott Soames, Noam Chomsky, Paul Horwich, as well as Norman Malcolm, Donald Davidson, David Lewis, Christopher Peacocke, Jerry Fodor, David Stern, Alex Byrne, Ruth Millikan, Hilary Putnam and John Searle.

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Price: £25.00
Pages: 278
Publisher: Anthem Press
Imprint: Anthem Press
Series: Anthem Studies in Wittgenstein
Publication Date: 05 May 2026
ISBN: 9781839990175
Format: eBook
BISACs:

PHILOSOPHY / General, Topics in philosophy, PHILOSOPHY / Movements / Utilitarianism, PHILOSOPHY / Movements / Analytic, Philosophical traditions and schools of thought, Philosophy of language

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‘A superbly clear, judicious, and compendious discussion of Kripke’s classic book on Wittgenstein’s treatment of rules and private language, and of the huge secondary literature it has spawned. It significantly advances our understanding of this difficult material and will be immensely useful to anyone, students and faculty alike, who is interested in these foundational issues in the philosophy of language and mind.’ —Paul Boghossian, Julius Silver Professor of Philosophy, New York University, NY, USA

Kripke’s Wittgenstein provides a lucid and compelling exposition of the main arguments of Kripke’s seminal book together with an exhaustive and illuminating account of all the principal responses to Kripke in the 40 years since the book’s publication. It will be a valuable tool for all students and researchers working on these topics.’ —Marie McGinn, University of York, UK

‘Ali Hossein Khani’s book offers a detailed reconstruction of Kripke’s famous interpretation of Wittgenstein and an encyclopedia of the myriad responses. Khani's book will be an invaluable resource for future work in this area.’ — Martin Kusch, Professorial Research Fellow, Department of Philosophy, University of Vienna, Austria

'Scholars and postgraduates approaching Kripke’s Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language for the first time will find Ali Hossein Khani’s excellent volume indispensable in understanding Kripke’s text and navigating the extensive and often difficult literature surrounding it. Indeed, even those already familiar with the rule-following issue will learn much from reading it.' —Alex Miller, University of Otago, New Zealand

'Khani’s overall point is to provide a detailed and disinterested reading of Kripke’s book Wittgenstein on Rules and Private Language, which itself provides a famous and controversial reading of Wittgenstein on rule-following (which is of interest in itself, that is, irrespective of how well it represents Wittgenstein’s intentions). It does so partly by examining various well-known interpretations of Kripke, and some not so well-known. This makes Khani’s book unique, as far I know. The book could easily become one’s first-choice secondary literature after Kripke’s and Wittgenstein’s own works, a kind of hermeneutic map of the territory.' —Gary Kemp, University of Glasgow, Scotland

Ali Hossein Khani is Assistant Professor at the Iranian Institute of Philosophy (IRIP) and a Researcher at the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM).

Preface; Reading Map; Acknowledgements; PART I: KRIPKE’S WITTGENSTEIN; I. Chapter One- Introduction to Kripke’s Wittgenstein; II. Chapter Two- The Sceptical Argument: Structure, Premises, and Conclusions; III. Chapter Three- The Sceptical Argument: Examining Candidate Facts; IV. Chapter Four- The Sceptical Solution; V. Chapter Five- Kripke’s Wittgenstein on the Problem of Other Minds; PART II: CRITICISMS AND RESPONSES; I. Chapter One- Introduction: Engaging with Kripke’s Wittgenstein; II. Chapter Two- John McDowell; III. Chapter Three- Simon Blackburn; IV. Chapter Four- Gordon Baker and Peter Hacker; V. Chapter Five- Colin McGinn; VI. Chapter Six- Crispin Wright; VII. Chapter Seven- Paul Boghossian; VIII. Chapter Eight- Philip Pettit; IX. Chapter Nine- Barry Stroud;  X. Chapter Ten- Hannah Ginsborg;  XI. Chapter Eleven- Alexander Miller;  XII. Chapter Twelve- George Wilson;  XIII. Chapter Thirteen- Scott Soames;  XIV. Chapter Fourteen- Noam Chomsky;  XV. Chapter Fifteen- Paul Horwich; XVI. Chapter Sixteen- Others: Secondary but Significant; References ; Index