Vygotsky and Marx: Toward a Marxist Psychology

Description

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. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents Notes on contributors Introduction: recovering and advancing Vygotsky’s Marxist psychology Part I Toward a Marxist psychology 1 Marxist psychology, Vygotsky’s cultural psychology, and psychoanalysis: the double helix of science and politics Part II Marxist epistemological and methodological aspects of Vygotsky’s psychology 2 Marxist methodological foundations in Vygotsky’s work 3 The problem of work, consciousness, and sign in human development 4 The germ cell of Vygotsky’s science 5 What makes Vygotsky’s theory of psychology a Marxist theory? Part III Psychological applications of Vygotsky’s Marxism 6 Imagination and creative activity: ontological and epistemological principles of Vygotsky’s contributions 7 Materialist dialectics in Vygotsky’s methodological framework: implications for applied linguistics research 8 Constructionist interpretation of Vygotsky: a theoretical–methodological study of the concept of language Index