Bartosz Tomasz Żak
Jagiellonian University
The concept of family resemblance, as conceived by Wittgenstein, is subject to diverse interpretations, different in aspect of their explanatory power and level of modification compared to the source formulation. The aim of my presentation is to review particular interpretive strategies and show that certain solutions are combined into coherent sets, and Wittgentein’s idea itself is more universal than the interpreters of each option claim. My intention is to present family resemblance as a universal tool, and individual interpretive strategies as equal ways of using it, thus attempting to defend the commonly criticized interpretation of R. Bambrough. I will argue that the deviating from the original formulation of the problem towards concretization in terms of more specific applications is not only beneficial, but also intended by Wittgenstein himself. I want to conclude that fully exploiting the potential of family resemblance requires developing this concept within three areas: semantic (E. Rosch, C. Mervis), syntactic (K. Campbell, N. Griffin) and theory of properties (R. Bambrough).
Chair: Christabel Cane
Time: September 13th, 10:40 – 11:10
Location: HS E.002
SOPhiA 2026 