Comments on the human emotions are presented throughout the work of the Belarusian LS Vygotsky, ever since the art criticism written in his youth. In this topic, he discussed the contribution of several authors: Freud, Claparède, Ribot, Lewin, Dilthey, Wundt. However, most of all he examined the James-Lange theory. This article aims to discuss Vygotsky's extensive criticism on this theory, in his manuscript "Utchenie ob Emotsiajakh", which fell in a broad theoretical and methodological approach: to compile and link the factual material without coordination, exposing the struggle of philosophical ideas behind the psychological ones, to pave the way for future research aimed at overcoming the dualism in psychology. Highlighting the main arguments in the manuscript for a vygotskyan approach concerning studies on emotions, we discuss the quarrel about the theme, which Vygotsky considered the most difficult, and possibly the more important for the future of psychology.
Emotions; Vygotsky, Lev Semionovich; James, William; Lange, Carl; Historical-cultural Psychology