Wittgenstein on Private Language

Abstract

Language is a social phenomenon and man is inherently a social being. We use language as a medium of communication of our thoughts to others. But if anyone uses a language which is known only to his own private self, not to others then it will hardly be accepted as language. This type of language is called private language in Wittgensteinian sense which is not possible because it cannot be learned and translated to others. The argument against the private language is one of the key parts of Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations. The main purpose of this work is to present his understanding of private language and to outline a number of problems associated with it within Philosophical Investigations.