ELIAS ON GERMANY, NAZISM AND THE HOLOCAUST - ON THE BALANCE BETWEEN CIVILIZING AND DECIVILIZING TRENDS IN THE SOCIAL-DEVELOPMENT OF WESTERN-EUROPE

This paper deals with aspects of the work of Elias: how he dealt with the rise of Nazism and the Holocaust, and how they fit into the genera l context of his theory of 'civilizing processes'. In response to crit ics such as Bauman and Burkitt, we seek to clarify what Elias argued i n his theory; and to show how, particularly in his book on The Germans (1996), Elias was able, using this theory, to shed light on the origi ns and growth of Nazism and its consequences for Germany and the world at large.