Goffman's presentation of self in everyday life: chapters introduction through six

¶ … Life

What kind of an impression does a person make upon others? Is it intentional? Is it natural? Is it engineered for the benefit of those who might be watching? Why? Those are the salient questions that Erving Goffman's book asks, and answers, and it is an important consideration because every day in numerous instances and situations individuals are making impressions on others. People are making good impressions, neutral impressions, and unfortunately, bad ones too. The impressions that others receive are often created artificially, too, according to Goffman's Introduction. The girl who gets calls in the dorm loves the fact that people hear her name and have the impression she is very popular. Even though she may not be popular at all. This is an "impression given off" (Goffman, 1959, 4). Most everyone reading Goffman's book has done this at one time or another, so it should bring a grin to many faces.

Many of Goffman's situations are interesting and perceptive to the point of being memorable. For example, it is a given that when observing another person in a new setting, one probably knows that person will present himself "in a light that is favorable to him"; but those observing probably are dividing what they see in half. One part relates to what he says does, and the other half is a result of the expressions he gives off, of which he has "little concern or control" (Goffman 7). And it is a two-way street, in that people observing what an individual projects, "will themselves effectively project a definition" of what they are seeing. Like a mirror, and yet Goffman writes that this all happens without having been thought out (9). it's something most people haven't thought about in those situations, but comfortably brought to light in Goffman's narrative.

In Chapter II, roles people play are on the agenda. The games people play, in body language and mannerisms, take on a greater meaning when examined through Goffman's magnifying glass. How many times has this scene played out? Husband and wife, or man and women in a long-term relationship, go out with new friends. She "may demonstrate more respectful subordination" to him than she shows when they are alone or "with old friends" (78-79). This is not rocket science at all, because meeting new people means being on your best behavior, in most cases. Still, Goffman's point is, when both members of the team play their roles that send a message that those new people in the audience will now expect to see. This is "team performance" and in this case, and others like it, each member of the team has the power to ruin the show, or keep it on track, by his or her behavior. This is the "bond of reciprocal dependence" (p. 82).

In Chapter III ("Regions and Region Behavior") there is more to learn, this time about "regions" (such as a cocktail party where several couples gather in one room in "subgroups" which "constantly shift in size and membership") (107). People talking and responding to others in regions are actually putting on a performance. Some realize it, some don't. Decorum is the expected polite behavior while in a region. "Make-work" is the performance that workers put on when the supervisor comes by; everyone's done it; it's another form of decorum.

On page 112-113 Goffman describes the way a woman acts when she is with other women, as opposed to the way she behaves around her lover, or husband. Around her man, Goffman quotes Simone de Beauvoir, she is "always play-acting" and she "lies" by making believe she agrees with her second-class status around men. But with other women, she is "behind the scenes," no long "play-acting." Women may challenge this concept, but Goffman presents it as though it is a proven and consistent dynamic between men and women.