Norbert Elias Book order

In 1962 Norbert Elias was invited as a temporary professor at the University of Ghana in Legon, Accra. He taught, employed fieldwork, travelled, and met many people in postcolonial Africa. When Elias left Ghana in 1964, he had laid the basic groundwork for a fundamental sociological argument on human societies. The volume on hand is a selection of his unpublished writings based on these experiences. Together they touch upon not only the well-known criticism of Eurocentrism and a developmental perspective but also what could be considered the core of Elias’s work: the concept of civilisation. In a foreword, Dieter Reicher and Adrian Jitschin have endeavoured to explain and break down the relations of Elias’s African experience to the rest of his work and biography. They also clarified some misleading interpretations of Elias’s time in Africa. Finally, Arjan Post has uncovered the previously unknown fascinating story of Elias’ encounter with Malcolm X in an epilogue.

Norbert Elias, a prominent twentieth-century sociologist, offers profound insights into the civilizing processes that shape human society. His works explore the evolution of knowledge, sciences, sport, leisure, art, and literature. This collection includes previously unpublished writings in English, along with thoroughly revised editions featuring clarifications, cross-references, and explanatory notes, enhancing the reader's understanding of Elias's contributions to historical sociology.

This comprehensive collection features the complete works of Norbert Elias, encompassing 18 volumes that include both published and previously unpublished texts in English. It showcases Elias' extensive contributions, including 14 books and about 90 essays, alongside poems and interviews. Expert editors have meticulously revised the texts, providing clarifications, cross-references, and explanatory notes to enhance understanding. This definitive edition serves as an essential resource for scholars and anyone interested in Elias' influential ideas.

Elias's final decade was marked by insightful interviews that clarified misconceptions about his work and expanded on his key ideas. This volume offers a comprehensive introduction to his thought, making it accessible for readers unfamiliar with his contributions. As the 17th installment in The Collected Works of Norbert Elias, it serves as an essential resource for understanding his intellectual legacy.

Beginning with the author's celebrated study of the changing standards of behaviour of the secular upper classes in Western Europe since the Middle Ages, this title demonstrates how psychological changes in habitus and emotion management were linked to wider transformations in power relations.

Originally released in 1991, this book explores the concept of symbolism in depth, examining how symbols shape human understanding and communication. It delves into various theories of symbolism, offering insights into its role in culture, language, and thought processes. The work is a significant contribution to the study of semiotics and provides a framework for analyzing the impact of symbols in different contexts.

Exploring the Individual vs. Society discourse, this collection features three pivotal essays by Norbert Elias, spanning from 1939 to 1987. Elias delves into the concept of individualization as a crucial aspect of socialization and civilizing processes across generations. He challenges the notion of a solitary self by introducing innovative ideas such as I-identity versus We-identity and the We-I balance, enriching the understanding of how individuals relate to society. This edition offers profound insights into the dynamics of identity and social interaction.

Focusing on the sociology of sport, this volume highlights Elias and Dunning's groundbreaking work from the 1960s and 1970s. They propose that in structured societies, sports serve a deeper purpose beyond mere relaxation, emphasizing the human desire for thrilling experiences and their satisfying conclusions. This book is part of the Collected Works of Norbert Elias series from University College Dublin, showcasing their influential theories on the interplay between civilization and sports.

The book delves into the dynamics of power and social hierarchy within two similar working-class groups in a 1960s community, illustrating how one group wielded power to marginalize the other through stigma and gossip. Elias extends this analysis into a broader theory of power relations, exploring its implications across various societal divisions, including class, ethnicity, and gender. Additionally, it features a posthumous essay inspired by Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird," marking its debut in English.

The writings in this volume previously unpublished in English include the essay 'On Seeing in Nature', his doctoral dissertation 'Idea and Individual', a response to Karl Mannheim's famous paper on cultural competition, and a number of short stories contributed to a newspaper. Other essays collected together here concern primitive art, the sociology of German anti-Semitism, kitsch style and the age of kitsch, and the expulsion of the Huguenots from France. This edition includes as an appendix a draft outline of Elias' Habilitation thesis begun under Alfred Weber. "Early Writings" have been translated from the German edition, Fruschriften, published by Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt/Main as volume 1 of the Norbert Elias Gesammelte Schriften, 2002.