Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus · Chapter
5.251 explained
Wittgenstein distinguishes between functions and operations, noting that while a function cannot take itself as an argument, the result of an operation can serve as its own basis, highlighting a key difference in logical form.
What happens
Wittgenstein distinguishes between functions and operations, noting that while a function cannot take itself as an argument, the result of an operation can serve as its own basis, highlighting a key difference in logical form.
Themes in this chapter
Logical Atomism
The distinction between functions and operations reflects the logical atomist view of the structure of propositions.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Wittgenstein
Author of the proposition distinguishing functions from operations.
Key passages
“A function cannot be its own argument, but the result of an operation can be its own basis.”
A function cannot take itself as input, but the output of an operation can be used as input for the same operation again.
Clarifies the difference in self-application between functions and operations.