Construction, Convention, and Subjectivity in the Early Wittgenstein

Abstract

This paper argues for three claims: (1) Seen from the perspective of the
pre-Tractatus writings, the issues of construction and convention play a much more
significant role in the development of Wittgenstein’s early philosophy than might be
thought on the basis of an isolated reading of the Tractatus. (2) Many aspects of
Wittgenstein’s earliest views on the role of construction in logic and ontology show
up again in passages scattered throughout the text of the Tractatus. (3) Some of the
seemingly puzzling remarks on subjectivity in the Tractatus can be seen as a logical
consequence of Wittgenstein’s views on construction and convention.