Philosophical idea popularized by Ludwig Wittgenstein
For the term as used in anthropology, see Family resemblance (anthropology).
Part of a series on
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Early philosophy
Picture theory of language
Truth tables
Truth conditions
Truth functions
State of affairs
Logical necessity
Later philosophy
Meaning as use
Language-game
Private language argument
Family resemblance
Ideal language analysis
Rule-following
Form of life
Anti-skepticism
Philosophy of mathematics
Movements
Analytic philosophy
Linguistic turn
Ideal language philosophy
Logical atomism
Pyrrhonian skepticism
Ordinary language philosophy
Fideism
Quietism
Therapeutic approach
Postanalytic philosophy
Works
Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus
"Some Remarks on Logical Form"
Blue and Brown Books
Philosophical Remarks
Philosophical Investigations
On Certainty
Culture and Value
Remarks on Frazer's Golden Bough
Remarks on the Foundations of Mathematics
Zettel
Remarks on Colour
Lectures and Conversations on Aesthetics, Psychology and Religious Belief
People
Bertrand Russell
G. E. Moore
John Maynard Keynes
Paul Engelmann
Friedrich Waismann
Moritz Schlick
Rudolf Carnap
Francis Skinner
Frank Ramsey
Vienna Circle
G. E. M. Anscombe
Norman Malcolm
Rush Rhees
Peter Winch
Peter Geach
G. H. von Wright
Interpreters
G. E. M. Anscombe
Gordon Baker
Stanley Cavell
James F. Conant
Alice Crary
Cora Diamond
Terry Eagleton
Juliet Floyd
A. C. Grayling
Peter Hacker
Oswald Hanfling
Cressida Heyes
Jaakko Hintikka
Anthony Kenny
Saul Kripke
Warren Goldfarb
Sandra Laugier
Sabina Lovibond
Norman Malcolm
John McDowell
Stephen Mulhall
Colin McGinn
Marie McGinn
D. Z. Phillips
Rupert Read
Constantine Sandis
Barry Stroud
Stephen Toulmin
Michael Williams
Peter Winch
John Wisdom
Crispin Wright
Hans Sluga
Other topics
Cambridge Apostles
Cambridge University Moral Sciences Club
New Wittgenstein
Stonborough House
v
t
e
Family resemblance (German: Familienähnlichkeit) is a philosophical idea made popular by Ludwig Wittgenstein, with the best known exposition given in his posthumously published book Philosophical Investigations (1953).[1] It argues that things which could be thought to be connected by one essential common feature may in fact be connected by a series of overlapping similarities, where no one feature is common to all of the things. Games, which Wittgenstein used as an example to explain the notion, have become the paradigmatic example of a group that is related by family resemblances. It has been suggested that Wittgenstein picked up the idea and the term from Friedrich Nietzsche, who had been using it, as did many nineteenth century philologists, when discussing language families.[2]
The first occurrence of the term family resemblance is found in Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860; The World As Will and Representation §§17, 27, 28) who attributed the term to the school developed by Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling (1775–1854). The next occurrence appeared in a note from 1930, commenting on Oswald Spengler's ideas.[3] The notion itself features widely in Wittgenstein's later work, and in the Investigations it is introduced in response to questions about the general form of propositions and the essence of language – questions which were central to Wittgenstein throughout his philosophical career. This suggests that family resemblance was of prime importance for Wittgenstein's later philosophy; however, like many of his ideas, it is hard to find precise agreement within the secondary literature on either its place within Wittgenstein's later thought or on its wider philosophical significance.
Since the publication of the Investigations, the notion of family resemblance has been discussed extensively not only in the philosophical literature, but also, for example, in works dealing with classification where the approach is described as "polythetic", distinguishing it from the traditional approach known now as "monothetic". Prototype theory is a recent development in cognitive science where this idea has also been explored. As the idea gained popularity, earlier instances of its occurrence were rediscovered e.g. in 18th-century taxonomy,[4] in the writings of Lev Vygotsky[5] or Władysław Tatarkiewicz.[6]
^Wittgenstein, Ludwig (2001) [1953]. Philosophical Investigations. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 0-631-23127-7.
^Sluga H., Family Resemlance, Grazer Philosophische Studien 71 (2006) 1; see also A Wittgenstein Dictionary, ed. H.-J. Glock, London:Blackwell 1996
^Wittgenstein L.,(1998) Culture and Value, London:Blackwell, p 14. Spengler's influence in this and other forms has been considered in papers published after this collection of notes became available, see e.g. DeAngelis W., "Wittgenstein and Spengler," Dialogue 33 (1994):41–61
^Winsor M., 2003, Non-essentialist methods in pre-Darwinian taxonomy, Biology and Philosophy 18 (2003) 387–400
^Cite error: The named reference Needham was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Tatarkiewicz W., Postawa estetyczna, literacka i poetycka (1933) where it was called 'domino resemblance'.
and 23 Related for: Family resemblance information
Familyresemblance (German: Familienähnlichkeit) is a philosophical idea made popular by Ludwig Wittgenstein, with the best known exposition given in his...
these objects are alike Familyresemblance (anthropology), physical similarities shared between close relatives Familyresemblance, a philosophical idea...
FamilyResemblances (French: Un air de famille) is a 1996 French comedy film. It was directed by Cédric Klapisch, and written by Klapisch, Agnès Jaoui...
it has been argued that these parts are related to each other by familyresemblance even though they do not all share the same characteristic features...
last names, etc. If we see enough matches we say we've noticed a familyresemblance. It is perhaps important to note that this is not always a conscious...
nominalism can really be said to have existed. While one might speak of familyresemblances between Ockham, Buridan, Marsilius and others, there are also striking...
has led many theorists to adopt less precise conceptions based on familyresemblance. On this view, different forms of education are similar by having...
"Dearly Beloved (FamilyResemblance)" 3 September 2021 (2021-09-03) For this week's mini-challenge, the queens will makeover a family member, partner or...
versatile McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, which bears a strong familyresemblance, as it was conceived as an advanced development of the Demon. The...
analytic movement. The term continental philosophy may mark merely a familyresemblance across disparate philosophical views; Hans-Johann Glock has made a...
insights in particular the formulation of a category model based on familyresemblance by Wittgenstein (1953), and by Roger Brown's How shall a thing be...
photographs of Dorothea as a child and at her current age to study familyresemblance between her and Marjorie. Dorothea's childhood photos strongly resembled...
(besides blackface and whiskers), which was used to give the cast a familyresemblance. The Dam dog is played by "Mannie", a canine performer first seen...
It also contains the private language argument and the notion of familyresemblance. The other trend, known as "Oxford philosophy" in contrast to earlier...
insights, in particular the formulation of a category model based on familyresemblance by Wittgenstein (1953), and by Roger Brown's How shall a thing be...
offshoot of the Babylonian-Arabic family of Jewish rites and retained a familyresemblance to the other rites of that family. Following the expulsion the Spanish...
why some theorists prefer offering less exact definitions based on familyresemblance instead. This approach suggests that all forms of education are similar...
series of tales chronicling a family of Illinois monsters, the Elliotts, that bear a strong resemblance to the Addams family. These stories were anthologized...
A transcript shows one of the agents remarking she bore a physical resemblance to her sibling. She told them the Soviets had confiscated her house in...
A small cowling was added around the headlight, giving the M50 a familyresemblance to the other Suzuki M series cruisers, the M90 and M109r. Sales numbers...
which he describes as intense and affectionate, he notices their familyresemblance and wonders why his mother would marry Paul, who was much older than...
imagined dialogue with him, where she begins to develop her own ideas about resemblance in relation to language, elementary concepts and basic-level mental images...