Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
22nd out of 230 books
—
200 voters
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
A study of human behavior in social situations and the way we appear to others. Dr. Goffman has employed as a framework the metaphor of theatrical performance. Discussions of social techniques are based upon detailed research and observation of social customs in many regions.
Paperback, 272 pages
Published
May 20th 1959
by Anchor
(first published 1959)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
2,872)
Aug 23, 2007
Cat
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
students of human behavior.
Shelves:
sociology,
socialinteractiontheory
I'm not a student of sociology or psychology, but I can't seem to stay away from the work of Erving Goffman. This is the third book by Goffman that I've read (others: Stigma, Asylums). In this book, Goffman elucidates a "dramaturgical" theory of self, which he claims is an additional method of explaining human action.
First caveat, I've not read any books by Talcott Parsons, or Manheim, and there were several sections in this book that were heavy enough in theory to make me give up. Despite thes...more
First caveat, I've not read any books by Talcott Parsons, or Manheim, and there were several sections in this book that were heavy enough in theory to make me give up. Despite thes...more
Perhaps the reason TV and film depicting human drama is so appealing is because these depictions are in idealized form imitations of certain impression that people wish to convey in everyday life. Erving Goffman's Presentation of Self in Everyday Life explores the idea that even though dramatic TV and film might be cases of art imitating life, it might be helpful thinking of ourselves as actors on a social stage with respect to our jobs and public lives. To varying degrees, we are trying to mana...more
Contrary to many of the reviews listed, I think Goffman's examination of social interaction as presentation is increasingly relevant in the consumer/citizen, capitalist culture we have created for ourselves in the Western, developed world. The performances we offer now are less representative and more detatched from a possible truth than the more romanticized presentations considered by Goffman.
Influenced, in part, by the work of Simone De Beauvoir, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life draw...more
Influenced, in part, by the work of Simone De Beauvoir, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life draw...more
Great book for those interested in social interactions. After reading it, it will force you to consciously consider why people behave the way they do, or why you yourself do. Be forewarned, it will disappoint your view of mankind as well. You come to recognize that humans are often limited by how they believe others perceive of them. It's definitely a book that will leave you seeking a higher reason for living, which in the end is a pretty good thing. :)
3 likes · like · see review
I read this classic sociological text at the recommendation of a
friend, because I was researching identity online. The book was quite
useful to provide some frameworks for understanding the presentation
of self online. But it's a rather distasteful work: personally, I
don't see my entire life as a performance and everyone around me as an
audience as he wants me to do (he calls this attitude his
"dramaturgical perspective"). Furthermore, the book was published in
1959, just before the social revolution...more
friend, because I was researching identity online. The book was quite
useful to provide some frameworks for understanding the presentation
of self online. But it's a rather distasteful work: personally, I
don't see my entire life as a performance and everyone around me as an
audience as he wants me to do (he calls this attitude his
"dramaturgical perspective"). Furthermore, the book was published in
1959, just before the social revolution...more
The title of this book says it all. We all present ourselves in public to reflect the image we wish for others to see. As an armchair social-psychologist, I enjoyed Goffman's unraveling of our human nature. To understand your opponent's "act" is to be able to guess his next move - the very essence of game theory. As this was written circa 1959, the data, studies and even writing style is a bit outdated, making it a little difficult to stay engaged at times.
If you enjoyed this, you should enjoy...more
If you enjoyed this, you should enjoy...more
I always felt that the reason so few sociologists took up Goffman's ideas was that they (the sociologists)were not good enough. I certainly felt this myself for about twenty years, and even when I did begin to use his ideas, it was in fear and trembling. Goffman was a phenomenon. The Presentation of Self is particular book was a real tour de force, probably his best book, though the later ones are wonderful too. Its central theme is familiar enough from Shakespeare - "All the world's a stage" -...more
I've wanted to read this book since I discovered Goffman as a student at Sheffield and so when I finally managed to get hold of the book I had high expectations. I must admit that I was a little disappointed. I thought the book would give me some kind of deep understanding into the psychology of public interaction but in fact it is a very sociological study. Goffman simply lists people's behaviours and then attempts to explain them.
Having said that, I would recommend this book to anyone with an...more
Having said that, I would recommend this book to anyone with an...more
I like the idea of the metaphor of presenting self as acting a part upon a stage and Goffman's extension of this metaphor but it eventually breaks down and applies only well only to institutions. It's ideas are also very dated so I would recommend reading scholars who have built upon Goffman's work rather than Goffman. As an alternative to struggling through this thing, the wikipedia page on dramaturgy is pretty good and links to http://ssr1.uchicago.edu/NEWPRE/CULT9... which is an excellent sum...more
Feels a bit dated and sexist by current standards, but Goffman's theatrical metaphor of symbolic interaction is still fascinating. Sure, it lacks the hard quantitative evidence that would really cement it as an idea, but when have symbolic interactionists ever cared about data sets? Goffman's writing is theoretical, but could easily be understood by a layman (which I most definitely am). Much of the individual observations will seem rather self-evident, but hey, someone had to codify how it work...more
I cannot wait to read this book. I studies Goffman briefly in class. All I know is that Goffman believes that all the world is a stage and that we're all playing a part in either front stage or back stage. For me his front and back stage theory is parallel to the macro-sociological theory of Systems-world vs. Life-world. Front stage is how we behave in the Systems-world and back stage is how we behave in the Life-world. I can't wait to get into detail because his theory makes sense to me.
My other favorite read for my Theory of Communication class (so far). I found Goffman's understanding of role playing and the theatrical metaphor really compelling. It's not an idea that each of us has never thought of before, but the depth to which he explores it, and the candor and lack of judgementalness that he uses to look at it were refreshing to me. Who is to say that the coiffed, controlled socially presentable me is any less real than my unfettered biological impulses?
I read this a long time ago, but I remember it being quite an interesting view of society. Told through a lens of phycology, this book illustrates the ways in which people use self-presentation in the functioning of society. Not the kind of sociology that will bring the working classes to the streets, but subtle and well described.
This book provides a useful multi-site and multi-facet discussion of "front-" and "back-stage" representations of selves, including interactions between performers and audiences and processes of mutual assistance in upholding performances. This book is well worth reading though the cases are rather dated and power relations are not as effectively engaged as I would have liked.
This text often gets ignored, but is still incredibly relevant today. Goffman's understanding of dramaturgy, performance and power relations help establish symbolic interactionism, gender performativity and other key concepts in queer theory, critical race theory and crip theory.
interesting book where the author suggests that we can best understand life as a drama, where people are actors who perform before audiences...he shies away from the concept of the self, and instead focuses on the social interactions that we have...pretty interesting thoughts...
I had to read this for my Contemporary Social Theory course. I didn't enjoy this book as much as everyone was making it sound like I would. I went into reading this book with huge expectations, about loving this book and how he relates things. I enjoyed how he makes things relatable to life with his examples. It makes the concepts he talks about easier to understand and conceptualize.
READ AUG 2011
Excellent work on the social interaction between individuals and how "activity is transformed into a show" (p. 34). Goffman describes how individuals take on roles, perform behaviors, and manage the impressions others have of them. Best quote, "whatever it is that generates the human want for social contact and for companionship, the effect seems to take two forms: a need for an audience before which to try out one's vaunted selves, and a need for teammates with whom to enter into c...more
Excellent work on the social interaction between individuals and how "activity is transformed into a show" (p. 34). Goffman describes how individuals take on roles, perform behaviors, and manage the impressions others have of them. Best quote, "whatever it is that generates the human want for social contact and for companionship, the effect seems to take two forms: a need for an audience before which to try out one's vaunted selves, and a need for teammates with whom to enter into c...more
Erving Goffman writes about social psychology in a way that is sharp, funny, and unbelievably insightful. He makes you think about all the little interactions you have in a day, and how amazing it is that most of them work so well.
A little dated, but an excellent book that will make you view your social interactions with a new perspective. Goffman does a good job of building up the framework of a theatrical metaphor for day-to-day interactions. The conclusion of the book is great--Goffman doesn't get ahead of himself and acknowledges the limitations and consequences of his theory and helps the reader understand them as well.
I was assigned this in a drama class and although I dropped out of the class, hung onto the book as a "to-be-read". Finished it late in life and kicked myself for it. Offers invaluable insight on behaviour and perception.
Partial, but mildly stimulating for anyone who already didn't know that our social lives are the result of self-conscious and un-self-conscious performances. Mind blowing if you're a freshman from the farm.
really enjoyed this book - a lot of its material is used on my sociology course, so it was really practical. More-so the first half of the book when it's talking more about personal identity, as the second half tends to focus more on how teams come together and the interactions between them.
Not one of my favorites. The cover perplexed me more than anything; the entire time I read it I stared too long at the cover trying to figure it out. A solid read written by a good social theorist.
This helped change my way of perceiving myself--and it definitely led to changes in how I presented.
Eye-opening, in a way this type of book rarely is.
Eye-opening, in a way this type of book rarely is.
A relevant book that goes beyond sociology. The world is a theater ; this book illustrates this very weel.
It was surely an important book in the sixties, and maybe even in the seventies...
This may have been written long ago but it has amazing continued relevance.
my handbook when I finished my thesis.
this book is kind of manual of life.
this book is kind of manual of life.
This was required reading in my sociolinguistics class at U of L.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| This BOOK IS AWESOME!!! | 1 | 31 | Aug 28, 2007 11:42am |
Erving Goffman (June 11, 1922 – November 19, 1982) was a Canadian-born sociologist and writer.
Considered "the most influential American sociologist of the twentieth century" (Fine, Manning, and Smith 2000:ix), as a subjective analyst, Goffman's greatest contribution to social theory is his study of symbolic interaction in the form of dramaturgical analysis that began with his 1959 book The Present...more
More about Erving Goffman...
Considered "the most influential American sociologist of the twentieth century" (Fine, Manning, and Smith 2000:ix), as a subjective analyst, Goffman's greatest contribution to social theory is his study of symbolic interaction in the form of dramaturgical analysis that began with his 1959 book The Present...more
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“And to the degree that the individual maintains a show before others that he himself does not believe, he can come to experience a special kind of alienation from self and a special kind of wariness of others.”
—
17 people liked it
More quotes…
May 13, 2012 04:25pm