Actions Embedded in Forms of Life
Abstract
n this paper I propose that any action attained through education and for-mation is embedded in a person’s form of life. The experiences that one was exposed to in early socialisation are crucial for the construction of a form of life. Actions are not regarded as acts per se or solely conceived of as singular move-ments but they are linguistically introduced and practiced. Someone’s acting or behaving in a specific way becomes manifest in language. Individuals com-municate with each other through a combination of speech acts. Selection and arrangement of language actions are not random but follow certain patterns. In line with L. Wittgenstein’s view, human conduct is characterized by a process of rule-following. The assumption of rule-governed language actions forms the starting point of this investigation. The context in which human actions proceed shall be investigated in three steps. First, we will establish a conceptual frame-work within which actions take place. Second, the relationship between lan-guage games and forms of life shall be examined. And third, form of life will be analysed in the broad context of society.