Abstract

Price’s chief interest in this study of the Investigations is the origin of speaking. A review of Wittgenstein’s examinations of logic, pictures, rules of use, and mental processes as proposed standards of meaning shows that no determinate standard such as these can explain the origin of speaking. Wittgenstein’s discussions of custom, usage, pain statements, and recognition serve to elucidate the context and origin of speaking. However, the result raises difficulties for comprehending the originative moment of speaking anew. Although these are partially resolved by Wittgenstein’s discussions of imagination and negation, the origin of any speaking must finally remain opaque because of the way ordinary usage contributes to meaning.