The Relevance Of Erving Goffman’s Ideas In Modern Society Essay.

Explain how this quote relates to Erving Goffman’s ideas as discussed in Chapter 8.

Refer to the core text to support your explanation.  You may also refer to any additional reading you have done.  Please use in-text Harvard citation.

Question 1B:

Explain to what extent you think the ideas and theories you explained in Question A are still relevant in today’s society.  

Support your explanation with specific examples.  These can be based on personal experience/ observation, the characters and storyline in the core text, newspaper articles / current affairs or other relevant reading you have done.  Please use in-text Harvard citation.

Mila to Dalina: ‘Where does this leave us?  Does this just apply to sociology, or to everyone?  Is it really impossible to understand the experiences of someone else?  Can a black middle-class woman only understand other black middle-class women?’ (Page 215, Chapter 16)

Question 2A:

Explain how this quote relates to the ideas about ‘universal truths’ and the ‘hidden voices’ critique of sociologists, as discussed in Chapter 16.

Question 2B:

Explain to what extent you think the ideas and theories you explained in Question A are still relevant in today’s society.  

Erving Goffman is generally considered to be one of the pioneers in the field of sociology and many of his ideas have influenced the works of some of the stalwarts of the modern era like Sigmund Freud, Alfred Radcliffe-Brown, Everett Hughes W. Lloyd Warner and others (Scheff, Phillips and Kincaid 2015). Furthermore, he is known for the research works which he did in the fields of sociology of everyday life, construction of ideas regarding self and the society, societal interactions and others (Heine 2017). It is significant to note that these are some of the core concepts of the domain of sociology even in the present times.

The quote “Even though I was being bullied at school.......I felt like I was going slowly mad” of the book “Dead White Men & Other Important People” has clear associations with the concerned social theories of Goffman (Fevre and Bancroft 2010). For example, the words of Ana have clear associations with the Goffman’s theory of identity. It is significant to note that the bullying and other incidents of cruel behaviour of her peers to which Ana was subjected to not had a significant impact on her character but at the same time wields a significant influence on not only the manner in which she perceives herself but at the same time the manner in which she identifies herself within the framework of her contemporary society (Layder 2014). Furthermore, the words are at the same time related to the Goffman’s theory of stigma wherein it is seen that the theorist states that the various incidents of stigma which a particular individual faces wield a prominent influence on their individual characters (Scheff, Phillips and Kincaid 2015). It is a reflection of this particular fact that the various incidents of stigmatisation to which Ana is subjected to leaves a lasting impression on her character.

The theories of stigma, identity and others which Goffman articulated back in the 20^th century are valid as well as apparent within the framework of the modern society even in the present society (Denzin 2017). It is significant to note that the human society has made unprecedented advancements not only in the thought process but at the same time within the domain of the manner in which the human beings lead their lives but at the same time it needs to be said that the condition or the situations faced by the human beings has not improved in any significant manner (Blau 2017). A typical example of this particular fact is the various incidents of bullying that the character of Ana faces in the book “Dead White Men & Other Important People” that not only affects the manner in which she sees herself but at the same time the manner in which she perceives the society around herself as well. Another typical example of this particular example is the fact that the even after the prohibition of slavery and the passing of the Equality Act the condition of the black and the other people have not improved in a significant manner in the nation of the USA in a significant manner (Heine 2017). Furthermore, the stigmatisation that these people receive at the hands of the society not only affects the manner in which they perceive their own identity and also the manner in which they perceive the society around themselves (Blau 2017). Thus, it can be said that even in the present times the diverse theories of sociology propounded by Goffman are still valid.

Question 1B

The concepts of “universal truths” and “hidden voices” have gained a significant amount of prominence within the cannon of the modern day society as well as the world. The “universal truths” are the truths or the fact which hold true in all the diverse situations irrespective of the context or the scenarios in which they are being used (Ryan 2014). The “hidden voices”, on the other hand, are the voices of the individuals or the persons whose voices have been suppressed or dominated over the society since the traditional times. In the present day context there are even been referred to as the voice of the subaltern or the marginalised individuals (Shannahan 2016). It is significant to note that when a critical analysis of the book under discussion here is undertaken it reveals insightful information regarding the concepts of universal truths and also hidden voices (Shannahan 2016). For example, in the quote under discussion here Mila seems to be arguing the fact that the things which are true for the white skinned people should also hold true for the black skinned people as well (Fevre and Bancroft 2010). Furthermore, the concept of hidden voices come into play since the sociological book clearly indicates the fact that the voices of the black skinned people and also the diverse members of their community can be seen as the hidden voices of the contemporary which inspite of the recent developments have not received adequate representation (Stackhouse 2016). This particular factor significantly impedes the growth and also the development of these black skinned people and this is seen as one of the major reasons for the lack of effective development of this particular community even in the present times (Stackhouse 2016).

The ideas of universal truths as well as the hidden voices hold significant ground even in the context of the present society inspite of all the societal developments that the human beings have been able to make over the years. It is significant to note that the world of the book under discussion here can be seen as the microcosm of the entire world itself and just like the character Mila in the book feels that the black skinned people are representatives of the hidden voices of the society or the subaltern and the marginalised sets of the society so in like manner they even represent the hidden voices of the modern day societal framework of the majority of the nations of the world like the UK, USA and others (Heine 2017). It is a reflection of this particular fact that even though the United Kingdom passed the Equality Act way-back in the year 2010 the people belonging to the black community have not been able to attain any significant amount of growth or development for that matter in the recent times (Heine 2017). Furthermore, even in the present times it is seen that the concept of universal truths are not being in an effective manner. It is seen that the things which are true or hold truth for one particular section of the society are not always true or implicate the same things for the other sections of the society (Ryan 2014). Thus, it can be said that the concepts of universal truths and hidden voices are relevant even in the context of the modern day society.

References

Blau, P., 2017. Exchange and power in social life. Routledge.

Denzin, N.K., 2017. The research act: A theoretical introduction to sociological methods. Routledge.

Fevre, R.W. and Bancroft, A., 2010. Dead white men and other important people: Sociology’s big ideas. Palgrave.

Heine, P.J., 2017. Personality in social theory. Routledge.

Layder, D., 2014. Structure, Interaction and Social Theory (RLE Social Theory). Routledge.

Ryan, J., 2014. Uncovering the hidden voice: Can grounded theory capture the views of a minority group?. Qualitative Research, 14(5), pp.549-566.

Scheff, T.J., Phillips, B.S. and Kincaid, H., 2015. Goffman unbound!: A new paradigm for social science. Routledge.

Shannahan, C., 2016. Voices from the borderland: Re-imagining cross-cultural urban theology in the twenty-first century. Routledge.

Stackhouse, M.L., 2016. Human rights and public theology: The basic validation of human rights. In Religion and Human Rights: Competing Claims? (pp. 12-30). Routledge.