Behavior in Public Places: Notes on the Social Organization of Gatherings [Hardcover]

Erving Goffman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1966

No Description Available

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“As in his previous work, Goffman reveals in this book a startling observational acuity and a highly developed skill in descriptive analysis....Goffman effectively extends his argument in favor of a diagnosis of deviant behavior which takes account of the whole social situation.”–American Academy of Political and Social Science. Annals --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Free Pr (September 1966)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0029119308
• ISBN-13: 978-0029119303
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,817,260 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Erving Goffman was Benjamin Franklin Professor of Anthropology and Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania until his death in 1982. He is recognized as one of the world's foremost social theorists and much of his work still remains in print. Among his classic books are The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life; Interaction Ritual; Stigma; Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity; and Frame Analysis. William B. Helmreich is a professor of sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center and City College. He has written Against All Odds, The Enduring Community, Saving Children, and The Things They Say Behind Your Back all available from Transaction.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Genius in the analysis of people in places, February 15, 2000

By 

W. Sanders (Bloomfield, CT) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Behavior in Public Places: Notes on the Social Organization of Gatherings (Paperback)

Very few books in sociology so clearly and profoundly conceptualize the concepts of social occasions as do the works of Erving Goffman. This book is especially important for it provides a framework for tricking out the seen but unnoticed behaviors of everyday life. The book's profoundity is not in what stands out in human intercourse, but rather what does not. The mundane world of social interaction is revealed in what most readers will find to be commonsensically true. In the same way that a physicist can tell us why a baseball flies over the fence (a fairly mundane evernt) in terms of mass, velocity, and drag coefficients, Goffman tells us why the ordinary is able to sustain itself as such.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I can't believe someone gave this 1 star!, May 26, 2011

By 

Clare - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Behavior in Public Places (Kindle Edition)

I am actually writing this in response to the review that gave 1 star. Yes this is a sociological text not aimed at children. However this work is actually quite easy to read (for most adults with some familiarity with sociology) and definitely has made a significant contribution to the field, particularly within symbolic interactionism. It is also far more accessible than many other key sociological texts (Foucault for example can be somewhat difficult to understand at first). I would highly recommend this to anyone seeking to improve their sociological knowledge especially as symbolic interactionism has had quite a significant impact in the field.

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm shocked that someone gave this book a one-star rating, December 16, 2010

By 

Stephen Zielinski (Allison Park, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Behavior in Public Places: Notes on the Social Organization of Gatherings (Paperback)

So, I'll neutralize somewhat this unfortunate evaluation by giving Goffman's masterpiece a five-star rating. And, being a kid is no excuse!