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This accessible collection of essays critically examines Vygotsky's scientific legacy. The book is solidly grounded in the "revisionist revolution" context and encourages constructive questioning of Vygotsky's theory of human development. It tackles thought-provoking issues such as the true value of his scholarship, the possible falsification of his scientific legacy, and the role of political factors and the Communist parties in the worldwide dissemination of his work. It is essential reading on Vygotskian psychology and of interest to students and researchers in developmental psychology, history of psychology, history of science, Soviet/Russian history, philosophical science and education.
List of contents
1. Vygotsky's Psychology of Superman: From Utopia to Concrete Science Anton Yasnitsky 2. Vygotsky and Marx - Re-Setting the Relationship Peter E. Jones 3. Rethinking Vygotsky: A Critical Reading of the Semiotics in Vygotsky's Cultural-Historical Theory Ruihan Zhang 4. Vygotsky's "Significant Other": Alexander Luria's Contribution to the Development of Vygotsky's Ideas Eli Lamdan 5. A History of the Social Construction of the "Cultural-Historical": Theory and School Peter Keiler 6. From Superhumans to Supermediators: Locating the Extraordinary in CHAT Clay Spinuzzi 7. On Vygotsky's International Celebration, Or How to Critically Appropriate Authors from the Past Luciano Nicolás García
About the author
Anton Yasnitsky, Ph.D., is an independent researcher who specializes in the Vygotsky–Luria Circle. He is the author of Vygotsky: An Intellectual Biography (2018) and has coedited (with René Van der Veer and others) The Cambridge Handbook of Cultural-Historical Psychology (2014), Revisionist Revolution in Vygotsky Studies (2015), and Vygotski revisitado: una historia crítica de su contexto y legado (2016).
Summary
This accessible collection of essays critically examines Lev Vygotsky’s scientific legacy in the context of the "revisionist revolution" and encourages constructive questioning of Vygotsky’s theory of human development.
Additional text
"This feisty collection is compulsory reading for anyone interested in Vygotsky’s legacy, and Vygotskians should be prepared to be, by turns, intrigued, enlightened and infuriated by its revelations. Will the ‘revisionist revolution’ in Vygotsky studies ultimately triumph? Or will the revolutionaries eventually turn on one another? That remains to be seen. But whatever the revolution’s fate, Anton Yasnitsky and his colleagues have ushered in a new era in Vygotsky scholarship." – David Bakhurst, Queen’s University, Canada
"This book is a must-read for anyone interested in better understanding the true contribution of Lev S. Vygotsky to psychology and in separating it from the constructions and interpretations wrongfully attributed to the Russian scholar. The interdisciplinary range of contributors gives breadth and depth to the coverage." - Wolff-Michael Roth, University of Victoria, Canada
Report
"This feisty collection is compulsory reading for anyone interested in Vygotsky's legacy, and Vygotskians should be prepared to be, by turns, intrigued, enlightened and infuriated by its revelations. Will the 'revisionist revolution' in Vygotsky studies ultimately triumph? Or will the revolutionaries eventually turn on one another? That remains to be seen. But whatever the revolution's fate, Anton Yasnitsky and his colleagues have ushered in a new era in Vygotsky scholarship." - David Bakhurst, Queen's University, Canada
"This book is a must-read for anyone interested in better understanding the true contribution of Lev S. Vygotsky to psychology and in separating it from the constructions and interpretations wrongfully attributed to the Russian scholar. The interdisciplinary range of contributors gives breadth and depth to the coverage." - Wolff-Michael Roth, University of Victoria, Canada
