Memory of Zygmunt Bauman

Born into a Jewish family in the western Polish city of Poznan in 1925, Bauman focussed his work on modernity and contemporary society.

He was a communist during and after World War II and collaborated with the communist regime’s military intelligence services in 1945-53.

In 1954, Bauman began teaching philosophy and sociology at the University of Warsaw, before leaving Poland for Israel in 1968 amid the communist regime’s anti-semitic campaign.

He arrived in Britain in 1971 and taught at the University of Leeds until his retirement in 1990.

Winner of many awards, including the European Amalfi Prize for Sociology and the Theodor W. Adorno Award, he wrote around 40 books, which were translated into 15 languages.