Human feelings in time: Towards the history and historical sociology of emotions

The social and historical study of human emotions has undergone substantial theoretical and empirical development over the past several decades, yet its implications for mainstream historical and sociological scholarship remain insufficiently recognized. This paper examines the field of the history of emotions through several of its most influential classical and contemporary contributions. It begins with the foundational work of Johan Huizinga and Lucien Febvre, whose insights established the legitimacy of emotional life as a subject of historical inquiry. Particular attention is then devoted to the historical sociology of Norbert Elias, whose account of the civilizing process remains the most systematic macrosociological framework for understanding the long-term transformation of emotional standards and their structural determinants. The paper also analyzes the theoretical framework developed by Peter Stearns, especially his concept of emotionology, alongside Barbara Rosenwein’s subsequent revisions through the concept of emotional communities, assessing the analytical strengths and limitations of both approaches. Drawing on recent scholarship, the paper identifies current theoretical frontiers in the field, and argues that a more rigorously emotion informed perspective is essential for any adequate account of human social life across time.