The Voice of the Other: Language as Illusion in the Formation of the Self [Hardcover]

Stanley William Rothstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 1992 | ISBN-10: 0275943585 | ISBN-13: 978-0275943585

This work introduces the concept of the Voice of the Other and the intersubjective world it creates for humans. The unconscious processes of speech and language are deeply identified with the ego. In the movement from nature to civilization, the newborn is mastered by language and becomes part of the social world of his parents. The child's thought is now structured by parental language and speech as well as by memories stored in the unconscious. What is real for the individual is composed only of the images and words that define them. Even family and school relationships are structured in language and the social formations that language created in the past. The imaginary and symbolic functions of the mind form ideologies that bind people together and help them to make sense of their world. In schools this leads to submissive students and constant teacher-student conflict. The author uses the works of Freud, Lacan, and Marx to situate schooling in capitalist society. He employs psychoanalytic, linguistic, and anthropological perspectives in an attempt to discover how we think and communicate with one another using unconscious processes.

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About the Author

STANLEY WILLIAM ROTHSTEIN is Professor of Education, in the Graduate Department of Education Administration at California State University, Fullerton.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Praeger Publishers (November 30, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0275943585
• ISBN-13: 978-0275943585
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,967,362 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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