Andy, that was a good quote from Novack you posted. Following my
understanding of Novack, he might concede that the metaphor of an
antechamber - a predecessor - to scientific materialism could apply to
early empiricism - Locke, Bacon, the birth of scientific thinking during
the rise of capitalist industry, etc. - but I think Novack would consider
the 20th Century forms of empiricism, such as pragmatism and logical
positivism, to be a step backwards from the achievements of materialism and
scientific reasoning of the 19th Centuries. As the quote you posted
emphasizes, Novack believed that Dewey took pragmatism as far as it could
go - following Dewey, pragmatism either had to take the materialist road,
which Dewey shirked, or retreat to less progressive-minded forms of
empiricism and disguised forms of idealism. A strong theme in
cultural-historical theory is to see a unity between Dewey and Vygotsky,
which is an indication to me of an interest in emphasizing the
materialist-oriented side of Dewey. On the other hand, it could also be an
interest in emphasizing some of the idealist tendencies of Vygotsky! As
for finding someone with the definitive interpretation of Marxism, let me
know when you find them!
- Steve
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