Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) has exerted a more powerful influence on contemporary philosophy than any other twentieth-century thinker. But what is the nature of this influence and why has it proved so enduring?

In Wittgenstein's Lasting Significance, twelve contemporary philosophers explore the issues surrounding Wittgenstein's importance and relevance to modern thought. Their articles, all of which are published here for the first time, cover the entirety of Wittgenstein's major publications: the Tracatus Logico-Philosophicus, Philosophical Investigations,...

The debate Michael Dummett instigated on how best to prosecute issues in metaphysics via arguements in the philosophy of language remains one of the central issues in contemporary analytic philosophy and impacts on other writers such as Quine, Putnam, and Davidson. The text aims to provide a systematic exposition of Dummett's contribution to contemporary philosophy, focusing on his discussion of realism. The author also deals with the nature of meaning and understanding and discusses two challenges for the anti-realist: the past and mathematics.