Family resemblance
Encyclopedia
Family resemblance is a philosophical idea made popular by Ludwig Wittgenstein
, with the best known exposition being given in the posthumously published book Philosophical Investigations
(1953) It has been suggested that Wittgenstein picked the idea and the term from Nietzsche, who had been using it, as many nineteenth century philologists, when discoursing about language families. Wittgenstein's point was that things which may 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. Games, which Wittgenstein used to explain the notion, have become the paradigmatic example of a group that is related by family resemblances.
Family resemblance features widely in Wittgenstein's later work, and the notion itself is introduced in the Investigations 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 gains popularity, earlier instances of its occurrence are rediscovered e.g. in 18th century taxonomy
, in the writings of Vygotsky or Tatarkiewicz.
Wittgenstein's critique of language. In Philosophical Investigations
§65-71 the plurality of language uses is compared to the plurality of games. Next it is asserted that games have common features but no one feature is found in all of them. The whole argument has become famous under the heading 'language games'.
The larger context in which Wittgenstein's philosophy is seen to develop considers his uncompromising opposition to essences, mental entities
and other forms of idealism which were accepted as a matter of fact in
continental philosophy at the turn of the preceding century. In his
view the main cause for such errors is language and its uncritical use.
In the received view concepts, categories or classes are taken to rely
on necessary features common to all items covered by them. Abstraction
is the procedure which acknowledges this necessity and
derives essence
s but in the absence of a single common feature it
is bound to fail.
he also mentions numbers and makes an analogy with a thread. He develops
his argument further by insisting that in such cases there is not a
clear cut boundary but there arises some ambiguity if this indefiniteness can be separated from the main point.
In §66 Wittgenstein invites us to
The section mentions card games, board games, ball games, games like ring-a-ring-a-roses and concludes:
The following §67 begins by stating:
and extends the illustration
The problem of boundaries begins in §68
s
which can be derived from the text of §66-9. The most simple one, which fits Wittgenstein's exposition, seems to be the sorites
type. It consists in a collection of items Item_1, Item_2, Item_3... described by features A, B, C, D, ...:
Item_1: A B C D
Item_2: B C D E
Item_3: C D E F
Item_4: D E F G
Item_5: E F G H
......... . . . .
In this example, which presents an indefinitely extended ordered family, resemblance is seen in shared features: each item shares three features with his neighbors e.g. Item_2 is like Item_1 in respects B, C, D, and like Item_3 in respects C, D, E. Obviously what we call 'resemblance' involves different aspects in each particular case. It is also seen to be of a different 'degree' and here it fades with 'distance': Item_1 and Item_5 have nothing in common.
Another simple model is described as:
Item_1: A B C
Item_2: B C D
Item_3: A C D
Item_4: A B D
It exhibits the presence of a constant degree of resemblance and the
absence of a common feature without extending to infinity.
Wittgenstein rejects the disjunction of features or 'properties', i.e. the set {A,B,C,D,..}, as something shared by all items. He admits that a 'sharing' is common to all but deems that it is only verbal:
Philosophical Investigations
is the primary text used in discussing family resemblances even though the topic appears also in
other Wittgenstein's works, notably The Brown Book
. Most contributions to the discussion are by people involved in philosophical research, but concern with more pragmatic questions such as taxonomy or information processing sometimes motivates the comments. Hans Sluga
has observed that "the notion of family resemblance... draws on two quite different sets of ideas, two different vocabularies, but treats them as if they were one and the same. The first is the vocabulary of kinship, of descent, of some sort of real and causal connection.. the second is that of similarity, resemblance, affinity and correspondence."
The main focus for criticism is the notion of similarity which is
instrumental for family resemblance. A similarity is always found for
two arbitrarily selected objects, or a series of intermediaries can link
them into a family. This problem has been known as underdeterminacy or
open ended texture. Admittedly infinity is only potential but for any
finite family some common element can be pointed out, especially if
relational properties are taken into consideration.
Wittgenstein's insistence that boundaries do not really exist but can
be traced arbitrarily has been described as conventionalism
and more generally the acceptance of his conception has been seen to present a refined nominalism
.
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. He was professor in philosophy at the University of Cambridge from 1939 until 1947...
, with the best known exposition being given in the posthumously published book Philosophical Investigations
Philosophical Investigations
Philosophical Investigations is, along with the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, one of the most influential works by the 20th-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein...
(1953) It has been suggested that Wittgenstein picked the idea and the term from Nietzsche, who had been using it, as many nineteenth century philologists, when discoursing about language families. Wittgenstein's point was that things which may 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. Games, which Wittgenstein used to explain the notion, have become the paradigmatic example of a group that is related by family resemblances.
Family resemblance features widely in Wittgenstein's later work, and the notion itself is introduced in the Investigations 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
Prototype Theory
Prototype theory is a mode of graded categorization in cognitive science, where some members of a category are more central than others. For example, when asked to give an example of the concept furniture, chair is more frequently...
is a recent development in cognitive science
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
where this idea has also been explored. As the idea gains popularity, earlier instances of its occurrence are rediscovered e.g. in 18th century taxonomy
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...
, in the writings of Vygotsky or Tatarkiewicz.
Philosophical context
The local context where the topic of family resemblances appears isWittgenstein's critique of language. In Philosophical Investigations
Philosophical Investigations
Philosophical Investigations is, along with the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, one of the most influential works by the 20th-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein...
§65-71 the plurality of language uses is compared to the plurality of games. Next it is asserted that games have common features but no one feature is found in all of them. The whole argument has become famous under the heading 'language games'.
The larger context in which Wittgenstein's philosophy is seen to develop considers his uncompromising opposition to essences, mental entities
and other forms of idealism which were accepted as a matter of fact in
continental philosophy at the turn of the preceding century. In his
view the main cause for such errors is language and its uncritical use.
In the received view concepts, categories or classes are taken to rely
on necessary features common to all items covered by them. Abstraction
Abstraction
Abstraction is a process by which higher concepts are derived from the usage and classification of literal concepts, first principles, or other methods....
is the procedure which acknowledges this necessity and
derives essence
Essence
In philosophy, essence is the attribute or set of attributes that make an object or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it loses its identity. Essence is contrasted with accident: a property that the object or substance has contingently, without...
s but in the absence of a single common feature it
is bound to fail.
Examples and quotes
Games are the main example considered by Wittgenstein in his text wherehe also mentions numbers and makes an analogy with a thread. He develops
his argument further by insisting that in such cases there is not a
clear cut boundary but there arises some ambiguity if this indefiniteness can be separated from the main point.
In §66 Wittgenstein invites us to
The section mentions card games, board games, ball games, games like ring-a-ring-a-roses and concludes:
The following §67 begins by stating:
and extends the illustration
The problem of boundaries begins in §68
Formal models
There are some simple modelScientific modelling
Scientific modelling is the process of generating abstract, conceptual, graphical and/or mathematical models. Science offers a growing collection of methods, techniques and theory about all kinds of specialized scientific modelling...
s
which can be derived from the text of §66-9. The most simple one, which fits Wittgenstein's exposition, seems to be the sorites
Sorites
Sorites may refer to:* Polysyllogism, a chain of syllogisms* Sorites paradox, a special case of polysyllogism also referred to as the paradox of the heap* Sorites is the name of a philosophy journal edited by Lorenzo Peña...
type. It consists in a collection of items Item_1, Item_2, Item_3... described by features A, B, C, D, ...:
Item_1: A B C D
Item_2: B C D E
Item_3: C D E F
Item_4: D E F G
Item_5: E F G H
......... . . . .
In this example, which presents an indefinitely extended ordered family, resemblance is seen in shared features: each item shares three features with his neighbors e.g. Item_2 is like Item_1 in respects B, C, D, and like Item_3 in respects C, D, E. Obviously what we call 'resemblance' involves different aspects in each particular case. It is also seen to be of a different 'degree' and here it fades with 'distance': Item_1 and Item_5 have nothing in common.
Another simple model is described as:
Item_1: A B C
Item_2: B C D
Item_3: A C D
Item_4: A B D
It exhibits the presence of a constant degree of resemblance and the
absence of a common feature without extending to infinity.
Wittgenstein rejects the disjunction of features or 'properties', i.e. the set {A,B,C,D,..}, as something shared by all items. He admits that a 'sharing' is common to all but deems that it is only verbal:
Notable applications
- Morris WeitzMorris WeitzMorris Weitz was an American aesthetician. He received his doctorate from the University of Michigan. During the course of his career he taught at Vassar College, at Ohio State University and at Brandeis University...
first applied family resemblances in an attempt to describe artArtArt is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
which opened a still continuing debate.
- Renford Bambrough proposed that 'Wittgenstein solved what is known as “the problem of universalsProblem of universalsThe problem of universals is an ancient problem in metaphysics about whether universals exist. Universals are general or abstract qualities, characteristics, properties, kinds or relations, such as being male/female, solid/liquid/gas or a certain colour, that can be predicated of individuals or...
”' and said of his solution (as Hume said of Berkeley’s treatment of the same topic), that it is “one of the greatest and most valuable discoveries that has been made of late years in the republic of letters”. His view provided the occasion for numerous further comments. - Rodney NeedhamRodney NeedhamRodney Needham was one of the leading British social anthropologists.Born as Rodney Phillip Needham Green, Needham changed his name in 1947,the same year he married Claudia Brysz....
explored family resemblances in connection with the problem of allianceAllianceAn alliance is an agreement or friendship between two or more parties, made in order to advance common goals and to secure common interests.See also military alliance and business alliance.-International relations:...
and noted their presence in taxonomy where they are known as a polythetic classification
- Eleanor RoschEleanor RoschEleanor Rosch is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, specializing in cognitive psychology and primarily known for her work on categorization, in particular her prototype theory, which has profoundly influenced the field of cognitive psychology...
used family resemblances in her cognitivist studies Other cognitive research has shown that children and even rhesus monkeys tend to use family resemblance relationships rather than explicit rules when learning categories.
Criticism and comments
Philosophical Investigations
Philosophical Investigations is, along with the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, one of the most influential works by the 20th-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein...
is the primary text used in discussing family resemblances even though the topic appears also in
other Wittgenstein's works, notably The Brown Book
Blue and Brown Books
The Blue and Brown Books are two sets of notes taken during lectures conducted by Ludwig Wittgenstein between 1933 and 1935. They were mimeographed as two separated books and a few copies were circulated in a restricted circle during Wittgenstein's lifetime. The lecture notes from 1933-4 were...
. Most contributions to the discussion are by people involved in philosophical research, but concern with more pragmatic questions such as taxonomy or information processing sometimes motivates the comments. Hans Sluga
Hans Sluga
Hans D. Sluga is a German academic, who is a professor of philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley. He teaches and writes on, among other things, Gottlob Frege, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Martin Heidegger, Michel Foucault, and German philosophy in the Nazi period.He studied at the...
has observed that "the notion of family resemblance... draws on two quite different sets of ideas, two different vocabularies, but treats them as if they were one and the same. The first is the vocabulary of kinship, of descent, of some sort of real and causal connection.. the second is that of similarity, resemblance, affinity and correspondence."
The main focus for criticism is the notion of similarity which is
instrumental for family resemblance. A similarity is always found for
two arbitrarily selected objects, or a series of intermediaries can link
them into a family. This problem has been known as underdeterminacy or
open ended texture. Admittedly infinity is only potential but for any
finite family some common element can be pointed out, especially if
relational properties are taken into consideration.
Wittgenstein's insistence that boundaries do not really exist but can
be traced arbitrarily has been described as conventionalism
Conventionalism
Conventionalism is the philosophical attitude that fundamental principles of a certain kind are grounded on agreements in society, rather than on external reality...
and more generally the acceptance of his conception has been seen to present a refined nominalism
Nominalism
Nominalism is a metaphysical view in philosophy according to which general or abstract terms and predicates exist, while universals or abstract objects, which are sometimes thought to correspond to these terms, do not exist. Thus, there are at least two main versions of nominalism...
.
External links
- Lois Shawver's comments on Philosophical Investigations §65-9 http://www.postmoderntherapy.com/Wittgenstein