52 of 55 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Classic of Enduring Relevance, January 29, 2000
This review is from: Asylums: Essays on the Social Situation of Mental Patients and Other Inmates (Paperback)
The fact that this collection of essays has been in print for almost four decades is consistent with its enduring significance. Although Goffman draws on his research in mental institutions, his writings in this book have much broader relevance. In particular, they have to do with the nature of identity, the processes whereby organizations and groupings seek to change the identities and selves of their members, and the strategies used by group members to resist those changes. At a broader level, this book is about the relationship between person and the groups of which s/he is a part. Extremely well written, and very readable with excellent use of illustrative examples, this set of essays provides unparalleled insights into and understandings of the relation between person and society.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The definitive sociological treatise of total institutions, July 6, 2003
This review is from: Asylums: Essays on the Social Situation of Mental Patients and Other Inmates (Paperback)
Summary:
The contents of this book are really far too complex to summarize, but I will do my best. There are two major points made in this text. The first is the development of the concept of the total institution. Goffman gives the following characteristics of total institutions: (1) all aspects of life are conducted in the same place under the same authority; (2) the individual is a member of a large cohort, all treated alike; (3) all daily activities (over a 24-hour period) are tightly scheduled; (4) there is a sharp split between supervisors and lower participants; (5) information about the member's fate is withheld. (p. 436) The basic examples of total institutions are mental hospitals, prisons, and military boot camps, though there are numerous other institutions that could be considered total institutions as well. Goffman doesn't leave his discussion of total institutions at a simple definition, he also describes nearly every aspect of total institutions, focusing primarily on the life of the inmates of the institutions (he also discusses the roles of the staff, but that isn't really the focus) and the effects of the institutional environment on the selves and identities of the inmates.
The second major point in the text is Goffman's criticism of total institutions, which is really limited to the very last section in the book (though you could easily see an underlying criticism throughout). Goffman's basic argument is that the total institution does several things to inmates (I should note that he is speaking specifically of mental hospitals here, though some of this could likely be applied to other institutions): First it stigmatizes the inmate, preventing them from being able to ever completely reintegrate into society afterwards. Second, it forces a 'sick' identity on the inmate. For some inmates, any problems or disorders they may (or may not) have are actually encouraged and/or emphasized in mental hospitals because of the culture and environment inside. In a sense Goffman is actually arguing that total institutions create more problems then they solve by turning relatively normal people into mentally unhealthy people (a good fictitious example of this would be One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest).
Goffman's basis for his discussion and analysis is a period of time he spent in a mental hospital. As an academic work, the book is also filled with references to previous literature and explanatory notes.
My Comments:
I was actually introduced to Goffman in an advanced social theory course but it wasn't until I thought about applying the concept of total institutions to one of the institutions with which I am familiar that I actually read the book. In researching the topic it appears that very little work has actually been done on total institutions (labeled as such) since Goffman's treatise (a lot of work has been done on prisons but it is in the criminology literature and does not generally refer to prisons as total institutions). I did find several examples of papers applying this Weberian 'ideal type' to different institutions, including: Indian Reservations, Graduate School, and others.
I think the reason why there is so little work following Goffman's treatise is because he is generally right, very clear, and remarkably insightful. If he has pushed the concept to its limits then there really isn't any point in trying to push it any further. In this sense, this book is comprehensive and very, very insightful.
But one of my reviews would not be complete without a criticism or two. The only real criticisms I have are the length of the book and the organization. The book is very long and, despite using a surprisingly large font, it takes quite a while to dig through the entire thing. There is quite of bit of information that could potentially have been left out, but if he had, perhaps this wouldn't be the masterpiece it generally is considered to be. Also, and Goffman recognizes this and apologizes for it in the beginning, the organization is kind of strange. Rather than organizing the book as a book with distinct chapters it is actually just a compilation of 4 papers that he had previously published. Some of the papers are massive (over 100 pages), but the problem is that there isn't a perfectly clear logic to the organization and there is absolutely no transition from one chapter/paper to the next. This really is forgivable as an academic work, but it does make things a bit awkward for the reader.
Overall this book is superb. Not only is it well-written (though perhaps at a rather advanced level) but it is incredibly insightful. Obviously Goffman caught the essence of the concept because no one has really challenged his understandings since. If you are looking for the sociological Symbolic Interactionist perspective on total institutions (mental hospitals specifically) or are just interested in what mental hospitals are really like (though this book is likely a bit dated), then look no further than Asylums. I highly recommend this for anyone interested in these topics.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ignored, September 6, 2001
This review is from: Asylums: Essays on the Social Situation of Mental Patients and Other Inmates (Paperback)
This book should have had an effect. Apparently it has had none. As an ex-prisoner of an American psychiatric 'hospital' I can only say that this book brilliantly deconstructs the disabling and dehumanizing effect of such insitutions. Goffmann shows as much compassion as he does insight in this work, all the more remarkable in a work of sociology.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
