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Norbert Elias and Erving Goffman: Civilised-Dramaturgical Bodies, Social Status and Health Inequalities

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The Palgrave Handbook of Social Theory in Health, Illness and Medicine

Abstract

This chapter explores the relevance of the works of Norbert Elias and Erving Goffman for understanding some connections between ‘mindbodies’, society, health and well-being. After brief biographical sketches of Elias and Goffman, Elias’ work on the civilising process is discussed along with his ‘psychosomatics’ in which he suggests neuro-hormonal pathways between ‘mindbodies’ and society. The increasingly internalised forms of social control, characteristic of civilised societies, are embodied in the form of what Elias called the ‘habitus’.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Montclair State University, USA

    Peter Freund (Emeritus Professor of Sociology)

Authors
  1. Peter Freund
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Sydney, Australia

    Fran Collyer (Associate Professor) (Associate Professor)

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© 2015 Peter Freund

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Freund, P. (2015). Norbert Elias and Erving Goffman: Civilised-Dramaturgical Bodies, Social Status and Health Inequalities. In: Collyer, F. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Social Theory in Health, Illness and Medicine. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137355621_10

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