In contrast, Gellner presents as the more successful mediator. As the founder of modern fieldwork, Malinowski argued that language serves two primary functions: Pragmatic: Its practical use in daily, active life. Ritual: Its role in binding a community together.
The "Robinson Crusoe" model where an individual constructs knowledge and worldviews in isolation. Language and Solitude: Wittgenstein, Malinowski...
Shifted toward " language games " where meaning is determined by social use. Gellner argues this merely "transplanted" the problem, making truth subservient to local custom. Malinowski’s Ethnographic Solution In contrast, Gellner presents as the more successful
Wittgenstein’s career is often divided into two phases that Gellner views as extreme responses to this dilemma: Language and Solitude: Wittgenstein, Malinowski...