G.H. von Wright's Biographical Sketch of Ludwig Wittgenstein

ABSTRACT

The article presents the history of Georg Henrik von Wright's well‐known biographical sketch of Ludwig Wittgenstein, which first appeared in English in 1955 and was later included in Norman Malcolm's Ludwig Wittgenstein: A Memoir . It will be shown that von Wright, during the years 1954–1984, published as many as six versions of the biographical sketch, the first of which was in Swedish. The revisions he made over a period of 30 years closely mirror his increasing knowledge of Wittgenstein's Nachlass during his work as one of Wittgenstein's literary executors and principal editors of the posthumously published books. The article also discusses von Wright's special contributions to the picture of Wittgenstein, where features such as the literary quality of Wittgenstein's writings and the difficulties entailed by Wittgenstein's dominating person and thought are central.