Page:Schlick - Gesammelte Aufsätze (1926 - 1936), 1938.djvu/282

 and the philosophical attitude. We can formulate it by saying. Science is the pursuit of Thruth, and Philosophy is the Pursuit of Meaning.

Of course the two cannot actually be separated. It is impossible to discover the truth of a proposition without being acquainted with its meaning. No one can essentially contribute to the progress of science without having before his mind the genuine and final sense of the Truths he is investigating. That is why all great scientists have also been Philosophers. They have been inspired by the philosophic spirit. Nevertheless the distinction must be made, and it has the advantage of giving a satisfactory answer to the endless questions concerning the nature and task of philosophy. Our definition of philosophy gives a clear and full account of its relationship to science and makes it easy to understand the historical development of their relationship.

Philosophy is most certainly not a science not even the Science of the sciences, and it has been one of its greatest misfortunes that it has been mistaken for one, and that philosophers have, in outward appearance adopted scientific methods and language. It often makes them a little ridiculous, and there is a good deal of truth in the way in which Schopenhauer describes the contrast between the genuine philosopher and the academic scholar who regards philosophy as a sort of scientific pursuit.

A Science is a connected system of propositions which form the result of patient observation and clever combination. But Philosophy, as Wittgenstein has put out "is not a theory, but an activity. The result of philosophy- is not a number of "philosophical propositions", but to make propositions: "clear". It is a matter of fact, the result of the pursuit of meaning cannot be formulated in ordinary propositions, for if we ask for an explanation of a meaning, and the answer is given in a sentence, we should have to ask again "but what is the meaning of this sentence?" and so on. If we are to arrive at any sense at all this series of questions and definitions cannot go on forever, and the only way in which it can end is by some prescription that will tell us what to do in order to get the final meaning. You want to know what this particular note here signifies? Well, strike this particular key of this piano! That puts an end to your questions.

Thus a teacher of philosophy cannot provide us with certain true propositions which will represent the solution of the "philosophical problem":