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The Concept of Perezhivanie in Cultural-Historical Theory: Content and Contexts

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Perezhivanie, Emotions and Subjectivity

Part of the book series: Perspectives in Cultural-Historical Research ((PCHR,volume 1))

Abstract

This chapter, advancing Vygotsky’s original definitions, makes an important distinction between the two meanings of perezhivanie—perezhivanie as a psychological phenomena/process which can be empirically observed and studied (P1) and perezhivanie as a concept, a theoretical tool for analysis of the process of development (P2). The chapter is an attempt to unlock the theoretical content of the cultural-historical concept of perezhivanie in three interrelated dimensions, in relation to: (1) the concepts of social environment and interaction of present and ideal forms; (2) the general genetic law of cultural development ; (3) the idea of analysis of complex wholes by units. Advancing Vygotsky’s legacy, this chapter introduces a concept of dramatic perezhivanie which allows to discover the dialectics of the process of development of human mind as a sociocultural genesis both in evolutional and revolutionary aspects as well as in a unity of macro and microgenesis.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Opyt (опыт) in Russian original text.

  2. 2.

    Internet resources is another evidence to support this conclusion, see, for example an extended discussion on the status of perezhivanie at http://www.ethicalpolitics.org/seminars/perezhivanie.htm.

  3. 3.

    I use the notion of “social environment”, not “social-cultural environment” which looks more appropriate in this context, because it corresponds to Vygotsky’s own terminology. According to Vygotsky “the word “social”, as applied to our subject, has a broad meaning. First of all, in the broadest sense, it means that everything cultural is social” (Vygotsky 1997b, p. 106).

  4. 4.

    In Russian original text the term начальная форма is used (Vygotsky 2001, p. 83) which might be translated as “incipient form”.

  5. 5.

    In the Russian text the word обстановка (surrounding) was used: Среду следует рассматривать при этом не как обстановку развития… (Vygotsky 2001, p. 71). Condition in Russian is условие.

  6. 6.

    In the Russian text the word моменты (moments) is used: существенными моментами для определения влияния среды … (Vygotsky 2001, p. 72). Factor in Russian is фактор.

  7. 7.

    In the Russian text—для определения влияния среды (Vygotsky 2001, p. 72–73), which can be translated “for defining the influence of the environment”.

  8. 8.

    Here the word perezhivanie is used in plural form—«переживания».

  9. 9.

    Perezhivanie of certain situation, perezhivanie of any part of this environment—«переживание какой-нибудь ситуации, переживание какой-нибудь части среды» in the Russian text (Vygotsky 2001, p. 73).

  10. 10.

    Moment (момент) in the Russian original (Ibid).

  11. 11.

    The same, moment (момент) in the Russian original (Ibid).

  12. 12.

    In the Russian original the expression «предмет большой привязанности» (object of great/intensive attachment) is used (Vygotsky 2001, p. 73–74).

  13. 13.

    In the Russian text «источник самых тяжёлых впечатлений» (a source of all kinds of… terrible impressions for the child) is used (Ibid). Nothing is said about emotional experience or perezhivanie in this sentence.

  14. 14.

    In the Russian original “страшной привязанности к ней и страшной ненависти к ней” (a terrific attachment to her and an equally terrific hate for her). The word страшной here means the degree of attachment (“deep”, “intensive”, “strong”, “terrific”), not the character of it (“dangerous” or “terrible”).

  15. 15.

    Everywhere in is this quote the Russian verb perezhival (переживал) is used. This is the past singular grammatical form of the verb perezhivat' (переживать), from which the noun perezhivanie has been derived.

  16. 16.

    In the Russian original text «у троих детей возникло три разных переживания одной и той же ситуации» (three different perezhivanie of the same situation appeared in three children) (Vygotsky 2001, p. 74–75).

  17. 17.

    Paedology was the complex scientific discipline of child development, which existed in the Soviet Union from the 1920s to the mid 1930s and was banned by a Communist Party Decree in 1936. Vygotsky was one of the founders of paedology (for details see Schneuwly 1994 and Langford 2005).

  18. 18.

    By developmental perspective I mean a sociocultural genesis of human mind, the process of “how the social becomes the individual” (Vygotsky 1998, p. 198).

  19. 19.

    “Переживание” is used in Russian original (Vygotsky 2001, p. 214).

  20. 20.

    The same, «переживание» in Russian original (Ibid).

  21. 21.

    «Переживает» in Russian original text (Ibid).

  22. 22.

    I undertook detailed analysis of the formulation of the general genetic law in my previous publications (Veresov 2004, 2005, 2010, 2014), so here I just repeat it in brief with the main emphasis on what is necessary for the topic of this Chapter.

  23. 23.

    Категория (Vygotsky 1983, p. 145).

  24. 24.

    In Russian «научный работник второй категории».

  25. 25.

    For example in Russian “consciousness is a unity of affect and intellect” is “сознание есть единство аффекта и интеллекта».

  26. 26.

    Here Vygotsky’s words “далее неразложимыми живыми частями этого единства” (further indivisible part of the whole) were mistakenly translated as “irreducible part of the whole” (Vygotsky 1987, p. 46).

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  1. Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

    Nikolai Veresov

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  1. Nikolai Veresov
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  1. Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Marilyn Fleer

  2. University of Brasília, Brasília, Brazil

    Fernando González Rey

  3. Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Nikolai Veresov

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Veresov, N. (2017). The Concept of Perezhivanie in Cultural-Historical Theory: Content and Contexts. In: Fleer, M., González Rey, F., Veresov, N. (eds) Perezhivanie, Emotions and Subjectivity. Perspectives in Cultural-Historical Research, vol 1. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4534-9_3

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