Re: [xmca] New Book: Zones of Proletarian Development

How about a full fledged review in MCA, Jonna? AND a discussion?
There are many interested in this line of "non-discussion" so perhaps its
time to make a not not not not.
mike

On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 6:44 AM, BRUCE ROBINSON <BRUCE@brucerob.eu> wrote:

> Jonna,
>
> Thanks for this description. I have ordered the book from Amazon. It may be
> a little while before I can get down to reading it in detail so in the
> meantime carry on with any other observations you may have. I took part in
> both the London events she mentions in case that's a qualification ;). I
> don't know the author either.
>
> You raise some important issues about the absence of this kind of topic
> from CHAT. If I remember rightly, there were a couple of articles in
> 'Historical Materialism' a couple of years ago that made some relevant
> links. I will try and dig them out.
>
> Bruce
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jonna Kangasoja" <
> jonna.kangasoja@helsinki.fi>
> To: "eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity" <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
> Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 1:48 PM
> Subject: Re: [xmca] New Book: Zones of Proletarian Development
>
>
>
> Bruce, Mike and others,
>>
>> I got the Mastaneh Shah-Shuja book yesterday and after a quick look it
>> seems well written and a fun read. Most importantly, like Bruce said, after
>> a long time of waiting this book breaks the crying silence inside the CHAT
>> field concerning research on contemporary political organization, e.g. the
>> anti-capitalist movement (why not also the environmental movement) and by
>> doing that opens up several lines of 'non-discussion'.
>>
>> One of the key arguments of the book is that the current phase of
>> capitalism consists of four methods of surplus value extraction: real and
>> formal, supplemented by 'pre-formal' and 'post-real'. The 'pre- formal'
>> represents the forms that could be called 21st century slavery (e.g. child
>> labor) and 'post-real' involve the application of computing, cyber, genetic
>> and biotechnologies to labor power. The post-real mode of extraction will
>> be completely original and may come to dominate and shape the interaction
>> within this four-runged matrix.
>>
>> She writes:
>> "It is the the enterity of the this four-runged evolving hierachical
>> matrix (i.e. pre-formal, formal, real, post-real), with all its tensions
>> and potential for joint activity, that I have termed the surreal phase of
>> domination. [...] It is my argument that collectivities, and perhaps
>> especially those that turn riotous or carnevalesque (i.e. those that
>> transgress routine) provide transformative space 'in which subjectivity is
>> unfurled, through the re-appropriation of of communication and the
>> experience of co- operation, a transformation in which the material
>> operation of reappropriation is also a moment of self-awareness' (Negri,
>> 1989:138)."
>>
>> The two case studies discussed in the chapter 'Activity theory and Social
>> Movements' are the 1990 anti-poll tax riots in Trafalgar Square and the
>> Anti-war demonstration of February 2003 in London with over million
>> demonstrators.
>>
>> The chapter also presents critique of activity theory and reflects on
>> utility and limitations of it for the present analysis. (I think that this
>> type of section is too often missing in CHAT inspired studies.)
>>
>> Why this contribution comes, what it seems, completely outside of the
>> 'CHAT-field', is also an important question. Or has someone come across the
>> author before?
>>
>> I hope she can join the discussion after people get the book in their
>> hands. Bruce promised in the previous note to start it.
>>
>> Jonna
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> BRUCE ROBINSON kirjoitti 21.7.2008 kello 18.27:
>>
>> Like London buses, you wait a long time for writings on CHAT and radical
>>> political consciousness and two come along at once (well, nearly - Wayne
>>> Au's paper on Lenin & Vygotsky has been out for about a year.) I imagine
>>> this takes a very different much more 'spontaneist' view of the zoped. I
>>> will get hold of a copy and post about it here. I haven't also forgotten my
>>> offering to write about Au and will when I get a bit more time. Maybe a
>>> comparison.
>>>
>>> Bruce R
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Phil Chappell" <philchappell@mac.com
>>> >
>>> To: <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
>>> Sent: Monday, July 21, 2008 12:26 AM
>>> Subject: [xmca] New Book: Zones of Proletarian Development
>>>
>>>
>>> Apologies for cross-posting
>>>> Phil
>>>>
>>>> New Book Information (An OpenMute Publication)
>>>>
>>>> Zones of Proletarian Development
>>>> Mastaneh Shah-Shuja
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> In this book, Mastaneh Shah-Shuja presents a novel approach for the
>>>> study-extension of the social movement. Employing conceptual tools
>>>> from Marx,Vygotsky, Bakhtin and Activity Theory she examines the
>>>> interaction
>>>> of individuals within crowds in a variety of settings including London
>>>> May Day celebrations, riotous Iranian carnivals, the anti-poll-tax
>>>> rebellion, the
>>>> great anti-war demonstration of 15 February 2003 and a number of
>>>> historical and contemporary political organisations. She identifies
>>>> ?zones of
>>>> proximal development? (Vygotsky) where people learn from each other,
>>>> solve
>>>> social problems, develop consciousness and engage in collective meaning-
>>>> making.
>>>>
>>>> Crucially, she demonstrates how capitalism is metamorphosing at a
>>>> number of fronts simultaneously. She shows how new methods of
>>>> exploitation and
>>>> accumulation are being challenged by an emerging universal class
>>>> unencumbered by some of the limitations of previous struggles. The
>>>> reactionary
>>>> nature of liberalism, social democracy, fascism and bolshevism are
>>>> examined
>>>> whilst the once-radical ideologies of left communism, council communism,
>>>> anarchism,
>>>> autonomist marxism, libertarian socialism and situationism are
>>>> subjected to critical interrogation.
>>>>
>>>> Imaginatively presented, with a collection of illustrations, Zones
>>>> of Proletarian Development captures the increasing complexities of the
>>>> class struggle in the twenty-first century and offers concrete
>>>> suggestions for organising against capitalism.
>>>>
>>>> Table of contents
>>>> Introduction
>>>> Chapter one - Epistemology, Methodology and Method
>>>> Chapter two- Vygotskian May Days
>>>> Chapter three- Iranian football riots as Bakhtinian
>>>> carnivalesque
>>>> Chapter four- Activity Theory and Social Movements: Two case
>>>> studies
>>>> Chapter five- Towards a new kind of revolutionary organising
>>>> Appendix 1- Mindful Thuggery and the Spectacularisation of
>>>> Drama
>>>> Appendix 2- The Glorious Proletarian Siege of Oxford Street
>>>> References
>>>>
>>>> Subjects:
>>>> Political Science-History & Theory - Radical Thought;
>>>> Psychology-Social Psychology;
>>>> Social Science-Sociology - Social Theory
>>>>
>>>> ISBN: 978-1-906496-06-7 pbk.
>>>> May 2008, 244x170 mm, c. 360 pages
>>>> Recommended retail price: ?15/?21/$30
>>>>
>>>> Author's biography: Mastaneh Shah-Shuja is an independent researcher
>>>> from an Afghani-Iraqi background although she has also lived
>>>> extensively in both Iran and Russia. She is currently living in the
>>>> United Kingdom with her two children. Mastaneh has been involved in
>>>> anti-capitalist politics since her early teens. Please send reviews/
>>>> comments to Mastaneh Shah-Shuja at: m.shahshuja {AT} yahoo.com
>>>>
>>>> This book can be ordered from all good bookshops including Amazon:
>>>>
>>>> For Amazon in UK go to
>>>> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zones-Proletarian-Development-Mastaneh-Shah-Shuja/dp/1906496064
>>>>
>>>> For Amazon in USA go to
>>>> http://www.amazon.com/Zones-Proletarian-Development-Mastaneh-Shah-
>>>> Shuja/dp/1906496064/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1209735928&sr=1-1
>>>>
>>>> For Amazon in Canada go to
>>>> http://www.amazon..ca/Zones-Proletarian-Development-Mastaneh-Shah-
>>>> Shuja/dp/1906496064
>>>>
>>>> For Amazon in Japan go to
>>>> http://www.amazon.co.jp/Zones-Proletarian-Development-Mastaneh-Shah-
>>>> shuja/dp/1906496064/ref=sr_1_8/503-4060494-
>>>> 3574325?ie=UTF8&s=english-books&qid=1209735460&sr=1-8
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Other bookshops you can order it from:
>>>>
>>>> The New Social Worker Online go to
>>>> http://shop.socialworker.com/Poverty-11294-1906496064-
>>>> Zones_of_Proletarian_Development.html
>>>>
>>>> Eruditor.com go to
>>>> http://www.eruditor.com/books/item/9781906496067.html.en
>>>>
>>>> Blackwell go to
>>>> http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/display_product_info.jsp;jsessio
>>>> nid=9518B86EDF540D371C4B07D9AF52CB10.bobcatt1?isbn=9781906496067
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ----- End forwarded message -----
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> xmca mailing list
>>>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> ----------
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Internal Virus Database is out of date.
>>> Checked by AVG.
>>> Version: 8.0.136 / Virus Database: 270.4.11/1554 - Release Date:
>>> 7/15/2008 6:03 PM
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> xmca mailing list
>>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>>
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> xmca mailing list
>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>
>
> _______________________________________________
> xmca mailing list
> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>
_______________________________________________
xmca mailing list
xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
Received on Thu Jul 24 07:11 PDT 2008