Wittgenstein famously rejected the analogy between metalanguage and a metaphilosophy:
"One might think: if philosophy speaks of the use of the word "philosophy" there must be a second-order philosophy. But it is not so: it is, rather, like the case of orthography, which deals with the word "orthography" among others without then being second-order."[1]
Recently Timothy Williamson has refrained from using the word and expressed concern that it might be misleading:
"I also rejected the word “metaphilosophy.” The philosophy of philosophy is automatically part of philosophy, just as the philosophy of anything else is, whereas metaphilosophy sounds as though it might try to look down on philosophy from above, or beyond."[2]
Other philosophers such as Nicholas Rescher or Richard Double[3] have adopted the term, putting it to good use. Presenting research on general philosophical principles Rescher's book begins with his view on metaphilosophy:
"Metaphilosophy is the philosophical examination of the practice of