Vygotsky and Marx: Toward a Marxist Psychology

by Carl Ratner (Editor), Daniele Nunes Henrique Silva (Editor)

Overview

This important book fills two interrelated gaps in the field of psychology, first by developing a Marxist orientation to psychology and second by explaining how psychological pioneer Lev Vygotsky contributed greatly to this trend. Through outlining core principles in Marxist psychology, the book offers a framework for continuing Vygotsky’s Marxist legacy in new areas of the field.

This book first documents the neglect in Vygotskyian studies of his deep use of Marxist concepts, and then subsequent chapters overcome this neglect. They explain the use of many Marxist concepts in his theoretical and methodological writings, demonstrating how Vygotsky utilized specific Marxist meanings in his work on consciousness, signs, development, imagination, creativity, secondary language acquisition, and unit of analysis. Chapters also address how Vygotsky dealt with incompatible theories and methodologies, illustrating how Marxist and Vygotskyian psychology can grow from anti-Marxist, anti-Vygotskyian approaches to psychology, such as psychoanalysis.

This book marks an original contribution to the field of psychology, offering a new understanding of both Vygotsky’s work and cultural and Marxist psychology. Furthermore, it expands the field of Marxism to include psychology. It will be of interest to all students and researchers of cultural, educational, and developmental psychology as well as the history of psychology. It will also appeal to social theorists and Marxist scholars.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138244801
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	04/11/2017
Pages:	220
Product dimensions:	9.40(w) x 6.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Carl Ratner is Director of the Institute for Cultural Research and Education, USA, and has developed the field of cultural psychology in generally Marxist directions.

Daniele Nunes Henrique Silva is Professor of Psychology and supervisor of the postgraduate program in Human Development Process and Health in the Department of Educational and Developmental Psychology at the Institute of Psychology, University of Brasilia, Brazil.

Table of Contents

Notes on contributors

Introduction: recovering and advancing Vygotsky’s Marxist psychology

Carl Ratner and Daniele Nunes Henrique Silva

PART I Toward a Marxist psychology

1 Marxist psychology, Vygotsky’s cultural psychology, and psychoanalysis: the double helix of science and politics

Carl Ratner

PART II Marxist epistemological and methodological aspects of Vygotsky’s psychology

2 Marxist methodological foundations in Vygotsky’s work

Larissa Bulhões and Lígia Márcia Martins

3 The problem of work, consciousness, and sign in human development

Daniele Nunes Henrique Silva, Ilana Lemos de Paiva, and Lavínia Lopes Salomão Magiolino

4 The germ cell of Vygotsky’s science

Andy Blunden

5 What makes Vygotsky’s theory of psychology a Marxist theory?

Peter Feigenbaum

PART III Psychological applications of Vygotsky’s Marxism

6 Imagination and creative activity: ontological and epistemological principles of Vygotsky’s contributions

Kátia Maheirie and Andréa Vieira Zanella

7 Materialist dialectics in Vygotsky’s methodological framework: implications for applied linguistics research

James P. Lantolf

8 Constructionist interpretation of Vygotsky: a theoretical–methodological study of the concept of language

Eduardo Moura da Costa and Silvana Calvo Tuleski

Index