Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus · Chapter
2.203 explained
The picture inherently contains the possibility of the state of affairs it represents, meaning that representation is not merely a copy but an expression of potential configurations.
What happens
The picture inherently contains the possibility of the state of affairs it represents, meaning that representation is not merely a copy but an expression of potential configurations.
Themes in this chapter
Picture Theory of Language
This proposition directly articulates the core idea that a picture (proposition) contains the possibility of the state of affairs it represents.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Wittgenstein
Author of the Tractatus, presenting the picture theory of language.
Key passages
“The picture contains the possibility of the state of affairs which it represents.”
A representation inherently includes the potential configurations of the situation it depicts.
Clarifies that representation is about possibility, not just actuality.