{"id":11090,"date":"2009-08-13T21:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-08-13T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2009\/08\/13\/en-philo-lacigf-2009-rio-wittgenstein-language-game\/"},"modified":"2009-08-13T21:00:00","modified_gmt":"2009-08-13T12:00:00","slug":"en-philo-lacigf-2009-rio-wittgenstein-language-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2009\/08\/13\/en-philo-lacigf-2009-rio-wittgenstein-language-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Wittgensteinian Language Games on LACIGF 2009 Rio de Janeiro \u2014 Language games and forms of life"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This essay applies the conceptual framework of the Analytic Philosophy \/ Philosophy of Language<\/strong> \u2014 most prominently associated with Ludwig Wittgenstein<\/strong> \u2014 to re-read the LACIGF 2009 Rio de Janeiro conference. Target audience: researchers, doctoral students, policy analysts, and executives.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Introduction: The Problem<\/h2>\n

Late Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations on language games offers a key to understanding meaning's fluidity in venues like IGF. The Rio de Janeiro conference is an assembly of language games where the forms of life of technologists, governments, civil society, and the private sector intersect.<\/p>\n

This essay argues that the multistakeholder process of LACIGF becomes intelligible in its specificity only through the concept of Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, and that the concept itself undergoes transformation under the new material of digital space. Describing this mutual transformation is the task of this essay.<\/p>\n

\"Analytical<\/p>\n

The multistakeholder language game<\/h2>\n

Terms like "multistakeholder" and "free and open internet" carry distinct meanings and uses in each language game. The usages brought by Brazil's participants can invert across contexts \u2014 yet this semantic slippage is itself a source of IGF's productivity.<\/p>\n

Each session's agenda-setting can be read as a contemporary restaging of the Ludwig Wittgenstein-type problematic.<\/p>\n

The regional IGF (LACIGF) holds a philosophically distinct position as the intermediate category mediating global universality and national particularity.<\/p>\n

Intersecting forms of life<\/h2>\n

Ludwig Wittgenstein's concepts are not confined to abstract philosophical discussion; they apply to the concrete agenda items debated at the 2009 conference. We examine that application below.<\/p>\n

1. Application to "\u591a\u8a00\u8a9e"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u591a\u8a00\u8a9e" can be positioned, from the perspective of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, as a central problematic. In Brazil's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u591a\u8a00\u8a9e are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

2. Application to "\u30a2\u30af\u30bb\u30b9"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u30a2\u30af\u30bb\u30b9" can be positioned, from the perspective of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, as a derivative problematic. In Brazil's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u30a2\u30af\u30bb\u30b9 are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

3. Application to "\u516c\u5171\u653f\u7b56"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u516c\u5171\u653f\u7b56" can be positioned, from the perspective of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Brazil's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u516c\u5171\u653f\u7b56 are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

4. Application to "\u5730\u57df\u5354\u8abf"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u5730\u57df\u5354\u8abf" can be positioned, from the perspective of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Brazil's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u5730\u57df\u5354\u8abf are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

5. Application to "\u8d8a\u5883\u30c7\u30fc\u30bf"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u8d8a\u5883\u30c7\u30fc\u30bf" can be positioned, from the perspective of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Language games and forms of life<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Brazil's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u8d8a\u5883\u30c7\u30fc\u30bf are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

\"Philosophical<\/p>\n

Implications for Executives and Practitioners<\/h2>\n

The philosophical reflection of this essay is not merely academic. The Ludwig Wittgenstein perspective carries three practical implications for executives operating in Brazil.<\/p>\n

First, it raises the reflexive question of how the firm's business model connects to the logic of Language games and forms of life<\/strong>. Second, in dialogue with regulators and civil society, it suggests dimensions of consensus formation that purely technical arguments cannot reach. Third, it indicates that the long-term ground of business legitimacy lies not so much in technical advantage or market share as in participation in such philosophical-normative debates.<\/p>\n

Academic Positioning and Future Research<\/h2>\n

The argument of this essay attempts to graft a philosophical perspective onto the mainstream political-science and legal approaches to internet governance research. Three future research questions follow.<\/p>\n

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  1. Verification of the applicability of Ludwig Wittgenstein's framework to other IGF conferences<\/li>\n
  2. Comparative contrast between Analytic Philosophy \/ Philosophy of Language<\/strong> and other theoretical traditions<\/li>\n
  3. Exploration of dialogue possibilities with the indigenous intellectual traditions of Brazil<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    In particular, the third point has the potential to liberate IGF research from West-centric debate and open a more multi-layered discursive space.<\/p>\n

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    Primary Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n