SOC 346 Lecture Notes - Fall 2018 Lecture 2 - Bryan Turner (sociologist), Impression management, Erving Goffman
20 Sep 2018
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Lecture #2
● “Taken for granted” of the body
○ Society makes people be aware of their body when they
deviate from what is considered normal
○ For example, a healthy body is considered normal and is often
taken for granted
■ In the Cooley reading, he states how when our bodies
become unhealthy, that is when we become aware of
it
I. Somatic society
A. Definition and characteristics
1. Body has become increasingly central to individual
sense of self-identity
a) “The body has become ‘the principal field of
[politics and activity]’” - Shilling
2. Individualized
a) Health is highly centralized
3. Reflexive
a) We objectify ourselves
b) The degree of reflexivity is a reflection of
context and power
4. External surface = symbol of self
B. Consequences of this concept of having a somatic society
1. The idea of the body as a project
a) Anything we to alter our body, we work on
our bodies
b) The contents of our bodies; size, contents,
shape, appearance
c) [Comportment] - the way we inhabit our
body
2. We think of our bodies as a process that we work on
and individuals work on their bodies to different
degrees
3. The paradox of the “uncertain body”
II. Toward understanding
A. Socio-historical context
1. Historical developments
2. “Culture”
a) Shared way of life
B. Individual “situationedness”
1. Placed in structures of privilege
2. “Intersectionality”
3. “Sociological imagination” (C.W. Mills)
a) The ability to see individuals in the context of
history and social structure
(1) Private trouble
(2) Public issue
III. Goffman
A. “Impression management”
1. When we appear before others, we act in such a way
to create desired definitions of the self and situation
B. Components
1. Performance - doing the impression management
2. The Front (3) -
a) The setting - the space that we’re in
b) The personal front - what the individual has
and can control that can give off meaning
c) The manner - how you convey your
- gives the idea that the body that is ‘taken-for-
granted’ is considered to be a healthy body
→ e.g., adolescence is a time where people
often notice their bodies
→ Concept from Bryan Turner; we’re in a
time where our bodies have become central to
our sense of self
→ society sees health as something
responsible by the individual
→ e.g., the power of race influences the
degree of reflexivity
- Those who don’t have to worry about
their race to navigate their way in
society
Identity = meaning of the self
} conveys the way we inhabit our body which
expresses our identity
- Our body projects are influenced by
social trends
→ there are historical events that occur that
creates currents in our society
→ there are symbols that give meaning,
language, norms, etc
→ it is dynamic, depending on the context,
some social structures matter more than
others
- It’s whenever we appear before others,
we engage in impression management
even if we are not aware of it all the
time
Document Summary
Society makes people be aware of their body when they deviate from what is considered normal. For example, a healthy body is considered normal and is often taken for granted. In the cooley reading, he states how when our bodies become unhealthy, that is when we become aware of it. Body has become increasingly central to individual sense of self-identity: the body has become the principal field of. Toward understanding: socio-historical context, historical developments, culture , individual situationedness , shared way of life, placed in structures of privilege, intersectionality , sociological imagination (c. w. Mills: the ability to see individuals in the context of history and social structure (1) private trouble (2) public issue. Goffman: impression management , when we appear before others, we act in such a way to create desired definitions of the self and situation, components, performance - doing the impression management, the front (3) -
