The anecdotes about the propagation of the mannerisms of Wittgenstein are a gem.
Here’s a particularly nice one about David Foster Wallace:
> James Wallace, who was a graduate student in
philosophy in 1959-1962, not only learned philosophy at Cornell but also picked up
a gesture of Wittgenstein. The gesture - hitting himself in the back of his head, to
indicate what a fool he was
was then passed on to his son, David Foster Wallace,
who eventually figured out its origin.
Here’s a particularly nice one about David Foster Wallace:
> James Wallace, who was a graduate student in philosophy in 1959-1962, not only learned philosophy at Cornell but also picked up a gesture of Wittgenstein. The gesture - hitting himself in the back of his head, to indicate what a fool he was was then passed on to his son, David Foster Wallace, who eventually figured out its origin.