I Think of You Constantly with Love: The Letters of Ludwig Wittgenstein and Ben Richards

by Alfred Schmidt (Editor), Gabriel Citron (Editor), Ray Monk (Foreword)

432 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 2026

About the author

Alfred Schmidt was a German philosopher. He studied history and English as well as classical philology at the Goethe University Frankfurt and later philosophy and sociology. He was a student of Theodor W. Adorno and Max Horkheimer and gained his doctorate with his The Concept of Nature in Marx.

Schmidt was professor of philosophy and sociology at the University of Frankfurt from 1972 and was made emeritus in 1999. Schmidt's primary research topics were the critical theory of the Frankfurt School, philosophy of religion, and Arthur Schopenhauer's philosophy.

Reviews

[James Klagge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating new discovery of letters between Wittgenstein and his close friend and (at least Platonic) lover Ben Richards. Ben was 35 years younger than Ludwig--a similar asymmetry to other "love" relationships Wittgenstein had. Reading the letters it is hard to see what Ben got out of the relationship--it seemed more like he was being solicitous to his grandfather. But perhaps this should be seen more on the model of male relationships in ancient Athens. In any case it was hard for me to understand. Wittgenstein, on the other hand, got a lot from the feeling of being loved and valued, and this sustained him constantly over the last 6 years of his life. It even made him a better person. And apparently Ben was holding his hand when he passed away.
We learn a lot about Wittgenstein and his activities during this period, but almost nothing about his philosophy. Yet this is a new perspective, which was hardly suspected. The text is full of thoroughly researched footnotes by the editors which provide the needed context for everything in the letters. Well worth reading for Wittgenstein fans--whether scholars or not.