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Quote by Erving Goffman

“individuals are concerned not with the moral issue of realizing these standards, but with the amoral issue of engineering a convincing impression that these standards are being realized. Our activity, then, is largely concerned with moral matters, but as performers we do not have a moral concern in these moral matters. As performers we are merchants of morality. Our day is given over to intimate contact with the goods we display and our minds are filled with intimate understandings of them; but it may well be that the more attention we give to these goods, th e more d is ta n t we feel from them and from those who are believing enough to buy them. To use a different imagery, the very obligation and profitablility of appearing always in a steady moral light, of being a socialized character, forces us to be the sort of person who is practiced in the ways of the stage.”

Quote by Erving Goffman

Author

Erving Goffman
Erving Goffman

Erving Goffman (June 11, 1922 - November 19, 1982) was a Canadian sociologist who is considered one of the most influential sociologists of the 20th century. He is known for his contributions to symbolic interactionism and impression management theory. more

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