On the Concept of Number [Zum Begriff der Zahl (1913/14)]

[515] Section 1: Difficulties of number concepts

Our questions are therefore those about the essence of numbers and the meaning of mathematical
methodology. These point to the special difficulty of negative numbers. E.g. -2 things: yes, but -
2 what is this supposed to mean? Neo-Kantianism has employed these same negative numbers,
and claims [they] were products and free creations of thought. Marburgers [a type of neo-Kantians]
see in these structures a support for their thesis of the creative activity of mind. From the
phenomenological side, the move from the start [516] went like this: they were taken as non-
temporal objects of an ideal nature, whose use is related to real things. This happened in the early
days of phenomenology, with the use of numbers as confirmation of the being of ideal objects. Such
being had to be the case, etc., since numbers are also object classes of which truths are valid and
applicable in the world. However, proceeding from this image, quite a few difficulties nevertheless
arise here. 1). We are talking about pure numbers as extratemporal objects of some kind, etc.
(Iterability of numbers), 2). Certain operations [Operationen] are possible on them (Addition of
numbers), 3) Applicability [Anwendbarkeit] of numbers to things.

A first difficulty is the application [Anwendung] to objects [Dinge]. Of use [von Anwendung] here,
at least in a very different sense than usual, is speech. The operation [die Anwendung] of what is
true of Straight Line to individual lines is entirely different from that of Five and five apples.
What is true of Straight Line is true of each line; what is true of Red at all, is true of each red. But
Number does not behave toward counted objects in the same way as, for example, Red behaves
toward red objects [Gegenstnde]. Analogous would be the relation between reality and real things
[Dingen] (real apples). What is true of reality is not readily true of real things. The same holds in
our case [so auch hier]: What is said of Number cannot be said of the objects to which it is applied.
However, the nature of predication is not entirely the same here. 3 > 2, but 3 men > 2 bears is
meaningless. And yet, 5+3=8; 5 apples + 3 apples = 8 apples holds [es gilt]. These same difficulties
are not found in Number [Anzahlen] as they are in numbers [Zahlen].

The second difficulty is that of addition. If the addition of numbers were the same as that of things,
-3+5=2 (numbers) as 1 apple + 1 more apple = 2 (apples), (I cannot add numbers in the same way
as objects) then we must be able, namely, from 2+2, to find 2+2=2. I have 1 apple and another 1
apple, so I can put them together [zusammenfassen] as 2 apples; I proceed completely analogously
with 3 and 5, and do not obtain 8, but 2 figures [Zahlen]. There are also different meanings of
adding [Addieren]. In one case, we disregard [absehen] the certainty of addition. In the other, we
should look more closely [in andern sollen wir eben darauf hinsehen]. 1 apple + 1 apple = 2 does
not come down to the matter [Materie] of objects. In 2+3=5 or 3+5=8, we disregard not only the
conceptual frame, but also the matter, in which counted objects [gezhlten Gegenstnden] play no
role.

Third and core difficulty: the addition of 2 + 2. What does 2 + 2 = 4 mean? It must be asked why it
is at all possible to say 2 + 2, etc., and why there are actually several twos. With apples, I have the
otherness from the objects of the enumerated things. But are there an infinite many twos? Must we
accept any number of realizations, i.e. of 2? We can with the otherness in the iterable. The difficulty
is, however: It makes [517] no sense, speaking from another Pythagorean theorem. And this goes
as well with 2 as some kind of object. The attempt to save the individuality of the twos by
allocation of a different place in time-perception helps no further, because we are adding numbers,
not number impressions.

We can attempt to say: Here it is a matter of numbers [Anzahlen]. There are no pure numbers
[Zahlen] at all apart from numbers [Anzahlen] occurring through formalization.