Norbert Elias

Born in Germany on 22 June 1897, Norbert Elias trained as a sociologist in a Europe that would soon try to destroy him. He fled the Nazis, eventually landing in Britain and taking citizenship in his adopted country. There he developed his theory of civilizing and decivilizing processes — the idea that what we call civilization is neither progress nor inevitable, but a fragile outcome of social forces that can reverse. The work made him famous, though recognition came late. He died on 1 August 1990, having watched the twentieth century test his thesis in blood.