About
Norbert Elias was a German sociologist and founder of figurational (or process) sociology. Born in Breslau, he studied medicine and philosophy before turning to sociology. Forced to flee Nazi Germany in 1933, he settled in France and then England. His magnum opus, *The Civilizing Process*, published in 1939, was initially ignored until its reissue in 1969 brought widespread recognition. He taught at Leicester and Ghana, developing an analysis of long-term social processes through human interdependencies. His work profoundly influenced contemporary sociology.
* 1897-06-22 — † 1990-08-01
Major works
- Über den Prozess der Zivilisation (1939)sociological work
- The Established and the Outsiders (1965)sociological study
- Die höfische Gesellschaft (1969)sociological work
- What Is Sociology? (1978)theoretical work
- The Loneliness of the Dying (1985)essay
Key milestones
- 1933Fled Nazi Germany due to his Jewish background, first settling in Paris then in England.
- 1954Obtained his first full professorship at the University of Leicester, where he taught until 1962.
- 1969The reissue of *The Civilizing Process* brought him international recognition.
Themes
Civilizing processSocial interdependenciesSocial figurationsLong-term social changeExclusion and power relations
Sources: britannica.com · onlinelibrary.wiley.com