DEFENDING A PURE BIOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF "FORM OF LIFE" IN THE PHILOSOPHICAL INVESTIGATIONS

ABSTRACT. In this paper, I defend the currently unpopular view that we ought to interpret "form of life" in Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations simply as "biologically similar." My defense takes place in two parts. First, in sections I and II, I attempt to recast the problem and provide criteria for a successful solution. Second, in sections III and IV, I provide both a philosophical and a textual defense of a pure biological interpretation.