ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a useful synopsis of existing interpretations of Zygmunt Bauman's sociology by focusing upon several salient themes which have emerged from current understanding. This begins with the debate surrounding the relevance of Zygmunt Bauman's biography, which it has been suggested holds several clues to his sociology. The chapter continues by turning its attention to identified thematic continuities, opening with a discussion of the prominence of the role of 'culture', which Bauman himself has acknowledged to be a significant coordinate in his work It draws upon the important work of Richard Kilminster and Ian Varcoe, who were the first to dedicate an entire volume to an active engagement with Bauman's key ideas when they presented him with their Festschrift. Bauman's biography was the subject of some speculation in the international press following claims made in Ozon, a Polish magazine of the political right.
