Lecture notes
Lecture notes Communication Theory and Analysis Goffman, E.
- Institution
- The University Of Aberdeen (Aberd)
Notes on Goffmans book 'The presentation of everyday self'
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Chapters 1-3Chapter 1 - Performances
➔ Performers can truly believe their own act or they can be cynical about it
➔ Natural movement between cynicism and sincerity
➔ The individual may attempt to induce the audience to judge them and the situation in a particular
way, may seek judgement
Front
➔ ‘Performance’ refers to all the activity of an individual which occurs during a period marked by
his continuous presence before a particular set of observers and has some influence on these
observers.
➔ Front is that part of the individuals performance which regularly functions in a general fixed
fashion to define the situation for those who observe the performance
➔ Front is the expressive equipment of a standard kind intentionally or unwittingly employed by the
individual during their performance
➔ ‘Setting’ involves furniture, decor, physical layout and other background items which supply the
scenery and stage props for the space of human action played out before, within or upon it. Tends
to stay put geographically speaking. Those who use a particular setting cannot begin their
performance until they enter it and cannot terminate the performance until they leave it.Only in
exceptional senses like funerals, where the performance follows the performers
➔ Observers need only be familiar with a small and hence manageable vocabulary of fronts and
know how to respond to them in order themselves in a variety of situations
➔ There are grounds for believing that the tendency for a large number of different acts to be
presented from behind a small number of fronts is a natural development
➔ When an actor takes on an established role, usually they find that a particular front has already
been established for it. Whether the acquisition of the role was primarily motivated by a desire to
perform the given task or desire to maintain the front, the actor will find they must do both.
Dramatic Realisation
➔ a portrayal of aspects of the performer that they want the audience to know. When the performer
wants to stress something, they will carry on the dramatic realisation, e.g. showing how
accomplished one is when going on a date to make a good first impression
Idealisation
➔ It was suggested earlier that a performance of a routine presents through its front some rather
abstract claims upon the audience, claims that are likely to be presented to them during the
performance of other routines. This constitutes one way in which a performance is, in a sense,
, 'socialised,’ moulded and modified to fit into the understanding and expectations l Adam Smith,
The Theory of Moral Sentiments of the society in which it is prt-senred.
➔ If an individual is to give expression to ideal standards during their performance, then they will
have to forgo or conceal actions which are inconsistent with these standards.
➔ Errors and mistakes are often corrected before the performance takes place
➔ Performers often foster the impression that they had ideal motives for acquiring the role in which
they are performing and that they have the ideal qualifications for the role and suffered no
humiliations etc
➔ Performers foster the impressions that the routine they presently perform is their only routine or
least their most essential one
➔ They foster the impression that their current performance of their routine and their relationship to
their current audience have something special and unique about them
Maintenance of Expressive Control
➔ Suggested that the performer can rely upon the audience to accept minor cues as a sign of
something important about their performance
➔ Performer may act in a way that gives the impression that he is too much or too little concerned
with the interaction - stutter or forget lines
➔ As performers must not be subject to ups and downs due to human moods or energies etc
Misrepresentation
➔ Audience is able to orient itself in a situation by accepting performed cues on faith treating these
signs as evidence of something greater than or different from the sign-vehicles themselves
➔ If the individual has only one thing to conceal during a performance and even if the likelihood if
disclosure occur at a particular turn or phase in the performance their anxiety may well extend to
the whole performance
Mystification
➔ Failure to regulate the information acquired by the audience involves possible disruption of the
projected definition of the situation, failure to regulate contract involves possible ritual
contamination of the performer
➔ Restrictions placed upon contact, maintaining social distance
Chapter 2 - Teams
Teams
➔ Concept of teams allows us to think of performances that are given by one to more than one.
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