Erving Goffman's Intellectual Heirs: A Survey of the Impact of Erving Goffman's Social Thoughts on Theorization of Contemporary Sociological Thinkers

علوم اجتماعی دانشگاه فردوسی مشهد

Article 8, Volume 21, Issue 2 - Serial Number 48, August 2024, Pages 233-283   

Document Type: Research

DOI: 10.22067/social.2024.85370.1449

Authors

Fatemeh Golabi^{* 1}; Adel Mohabatian²

¹Professor in Department of Social Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

²PhD Candidate in Economic Sociology and Development, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

Abstract

Erving Goffman's social thoughts have profoundly influenced contemporary thinkers across various domains of sociology and beyond, shaping the way modern scholars approach the study of human interaction and social structures. Goffman broke away from his contemporaries who focused on macro social phenomena and explored the day-to-day aspects of social life that were not widely studied at the time and were not deemed conducive to  a sociologist's career advancement. Though not a prominent methodologist or a traditional theorist, Goffman uniquely combined theory and method, focusing on previously unexplored areas of sociology. Goffman benefited from his preceding classical thinkers in sociology. Inspired by the theories of Georg Simmel, he concentrated on social forms as well as the molecular processes of social life. Goffman adopted Emile Durkheim's concept of ritual, which he used to clarify the concept of ego and the moral dimension in everyday life interactions. The theories of George Herbert Mead kindled his interest in symbolic interrelationships between people. Goffman also borrowed many ideas from existentialism's take on the absurd nature of modern life, as well as from animal behaviorism (especially the idea of developing personal territories). On the other hand, Goffman's theories particularly influenced many social thinkers worldwide. This paper seeks to investigate the impact of Erving Goffman's sociological thoughts on various contemporary thinkers using the library research method. including Harold Garfinkel (ethnomethodology), Anthony Giddens (ontological security), Jürgen Habermas (communicative action theory), Nicolas Lohmann (complexities of communication, trust and social order), Pierre Bourdieu (gender studies, micro-macro links and the dynamics of symbolic violence), sociology of emotions (power dynamics, economic aspects, and internal processes of emotion management), as well as a wide range of thinkers in diverse fields who have been inspired by Goffman's thoughts.
 
 

Keywords

Erving Goffman; Jürgen Habermas; Sociology of emotions; Harold Garfinkel; Anthony Giddens; Nicolas Lohmann; Pierre Bourdieu

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