Tuesday, November 28, 2006

2.0251 Space, time, and color (coloredness) are forms of objects.


Bear in mind 2.0141 ("The possibility of its occurrence in states of affairs is the form of an object.") So space, time, and color are possibilities of objects occurring in states of affairs. "Forms of objects" then are what I have been calling dimensions. An object's form is the dimension, or set of dimensions, in which it exists as a possibility, or the representative of that possibility.

2 comments:

Ayoob said...

Hi,
I have been thinking about this section of the Tractatus, and it is so puzzling for me. I would be grateful if you could could tell me why he introduces "colour" along with space and time as forms of objects. I understand why space and time are included, but not why "colour"?
So, does it mean that colorless objects could not be represented in thought or language?

Duncan Richter said...

I don't think he means that colorless objects could not be represented in language. It's hard to say what objects are, but I tend to think of them as points or coordinates in a multi-dimensional map of possibilities. If I name a time then I have named a point (in time) at which something might occur. If I name a place then I have identified a point (in space) at which something might be. And if I name a color then I have identified a point (on the color wheel, say) that something might occupy. Perhaps 'no color' should be included on the color wheel, or perhaps we should say that not every dimension (e.g. color, degree of hardness, loudness, etc.) applies to every object. Maybe time and/or space don't apply to them all either.