The ‘Rediscovery’ of the Body

In this 1981 manuscript for a talk, Elias criticises the supposed ‘rediscovery’ of the body by sociologists of that period. He shows that it represents a revival of the old philosophical dualisms of ‘mind–body’ and ‘body–soul’, which in turn had their roots in the religious aspiration to eternal life. Instead, Elias describes these aspects as inseparable poles of the human capacity of self-control, ranging from more deliberate to more automatic forms.