P. M. S. Hacker is a fellow of St John's College, Oxford. He is author of numerous books and articles on philosophy of mind and philosophy of language, and a leading authority on the philosophy of Wittgenstein. Among his many publications on Wittgenstein is the monumental four volume Analytical Commentary on the Philosophical Investigations published by Blackwell, the first two volumes of which are co-authored with G. P. Baker.

• Preface ixAcknowledgements xiiList of Abbreviations xivChapter 1 The Background 11 The origins of analytic philosophy 12 The problem-setting context of the Tractatus 12Chapter 2 The Achievement of the Tractatus 221 Unquestioned legacy 222 Criticisms of Frege and Russell 263 The metaphysical picture of the relation of thought, language and reality 294 The positive account of the propositions of logic 325 The critique of metaphysics and the conception of future philosophy as analysis 35Chapter 3 The Impact of the Tractatus: The Vienna Circle 391 The Vienna Circle 392 Philosophy, analysis, and the scientific world-view 423 The demolition of metaphysics 444 Necessary propositions, conventionalism and consistent empiricism 455 The principle of verification 506 The unity of science 59Chapter 4 The Inter-war Years: Cambridge and Oxford 671 Cambridge between the wars 672 Wittgenstein in Cambridge 763 Oxford between the wars 87Chapter 5 The Achievement of the Investigations 971 The hedgehog and the fox 972 The repudiation of analysis 1033 The nature of philosophy 1104 Metaphysics 1175 Philosophy of language and the unity of the Investigations 1236 Philosophical psychology 130Chapter 6 Wittgenstein’s Impact upon Post-war Analytic Philosophy 1371 Publications and pupils 1382 Philosophy at Oxford, 1945-70 1483 Wittgenstein and post-war philosophy at Oxford 162Chapter 7 Post-positivism in the United States and Quine’s Apostasy 1831 The logical positivists in America 1832 Quine and Wittgenstein: similarity amidst differences 1893 Quine and logical empiricism: the end of analytic philosophy? 1934 Quine’s progress 1965 Quine and Wittgenstein: differences beneath similarities 207Chapter 8 The decline of Analytic Philosophy 2281 The critical backlash 2282 Criticisms of Wittgenstein 2393 The aftermath 264Notes 274Index 334

"A mojor contribution to the history of analytic philosophy, this substantial volume delivers even more than the title promises" David G Stern, The Philosophical Review