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Dramaturgy is a
sociological Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...
perspective commonly used in micro-sociological accounts of social interaction in everyday life. The term was first adapted into sociology from the theatre by
Erving Goffman Erving Goffman (11 June 1922 – 19 November 1982) was a Canadian-born sociology, sociologist, Social psychology (sociology), social psychologist, and writer, considered by some "the most influential American sociologist of the twentieth ...
, who developed most of the related terminology and ideas in his 1956 book, ''
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life ''The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life'' is a 1956 sociology, sociological book by Erving Goffman, in which the author uses the imagery of theatre in order to portray the importance of Social relation, human social interaction; this approac ...
''.
Kenneth Burke Kenneth Duva Burke (May 5, 1897 – November 19, 1993) was an American literary theorist, as well as poet, essayist, and novelist, who wrote on 20th-century philosophy, aesthetics, criticism, and rhetorical theory. As a literary theorist, Burk ...
, whom Goffman would later acknowledge as an influence, had earlier presented his notions of ''
dramatism Dramatism, a communication studies theory, was developed by Kenneth Burke as a tool for analyzing human relationships through the use of language. Burke viewed dramatism from the lens of logology, which studies how people's ways of speaking shape ...
'' in 1945, which in turn derives from
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
. The fundamental difference between Burke's and Goffman's view, however, is that Burke believed that life was in fact theatre, whereas Goffman viewed theatre as a metaphor. If we imagine ourselves as directors observing what goes on in the theatre of everyday life, we are doing what Goffman called dramaturgical analysis, the study of social interaction in terms of theatrical performance. In dramaturgical sociology, it is argued that the elements of human interactions are dependent upon time, place, and audience. In other words, to Goffman, the
self The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this reference is necessarily subjective. The sense of having a self—or ''selfhood ...
is a sense of who one is, a dramatic effect emerging from the immediate scene being presented.
Ritzer, George George Ritzer (born October 14, 1940) is an American sociologist, professor, and author who has mainly studied globalization, metatheory, patterns of consumption, and modern/postmodern social theory. His concept of McDonaldization draws upon Ma ...
. 2007. ''Contemporary Sociological Theory and Its Classical Roots: The Basics.'' New York: McGraw-Hill.
Goffman forms a theatrical
metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wit ...
in defining the method in which one human being presents itself to another based on cultural
values In ethics and social sciences, value denotes the degree of importance of something or action, with the aim of determining which actions are best to do or what way is best to live (normative ethics in ethics), or to describe the significance of dif ...
, norms, and beliefs. Performances can have disruptions (actors are aware of such), but most are successful. The goal of this presentation of self is acceptance from the audience through carefully conducted performance. If the actor succeeds, the audience will view the actor as he or she wants to be viewed. A ''dramaturgical action'' is a
social action In sociology, social action, also known as Weberian social action, is an act which takes into account the actions and reactions of individuals (or ' agents'). According to Max Weber, "Action is 'social' insofar as its subjective meaning takes ...
that is designed to be seen by others and to improve one's public
self-image Self-image is the mental picture, generally of a kind that is quite resistant to change, that depicts not only details that are potentially available to an objective investigation by others (height, weight, hair color, etc.), but also items that h ...
. In addition to Goffman, this concept has been used by
Jürgen Habermas Jürgen Habermas (, ; ; born 18 June 1929) is a German social theorist in the tradition of critical theory and pragmatism. His work addresses communicative rationality and the public sphere. Associated with the Frankfurt School, Habermas's wor ...
and
Harold Garfinkel Harold Garfinkel (October 29, 1917 – April 21, 2011) was an American sociologist and ethnomethodologist, who taught at the University of California, Los Angeles. Having developed and established ethnomethodology as a field of inquiry in sociolo ...
, among others.


Overview

The theater metaphor can be seen in the origins of the word ''person'', which comes from the Latin ''persona'', meaning 'a mask worn by actors'. We behave differently (play different roles) in front of different people (audiences). We pick out clothing (a costume) that is consistent with the image we wish to project. We enlist the help of friends, caterers, and decorators (fellow actors and stage crew) to help us successfully “stage” a dinner for a friend, a birthday party for a relative, or a gala for a fundraiser. If we need to adjust our clothing or wish to say something unflattering about one of our guests, we are careful to do so out of sight of others (backstage). The presentation of ourselves to others is known as ''dramaturgy''. Dramaturgical perspective is one of several sociological ''paradigms'' separated from other sociological ''theories'' or theoretical frameworks because, rather than examining the cause of
human behavior Human behavior is the potential and expressed capacity ( mentally, physically, and socially) of human individuals or groups to respond to internal and external stimuli throughout their life. Kagan, Jerome, Marc H. Bornstein, and Richard M. L ...
, it analyzes the context. This is, however, debatable within sociology. In ''Frame Analysis'' (1974), Goffman writes, "What is important is the sense he person or actorprovides them he others or audiencethrough his dealing with them of what sort of person he is behind the role he is in." The dramaturgical perspective can be seen as an anchor to this perspective, wherein the individual's identity is performed through role(s) and consensus between the actor and the audience. Because of this dependence on consensus to define social situations, the perspective argues that there is no concrete meaning to any interaction that could not be redefined. Dramaturgy emphasizes expressiveness as the main component of interactions; it is thus termed as the "fully two-sided view of human interaction." Dramaturgical theory suggests that a person's
identity Identity may refer to: * Identity document * Identity (philosophy) * Identity (social science) * Identity (mathematics) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Identity'' (1987 film), an Iranian film * ''Identity'' (2003 film), ...
is not a stable and independent psychological entity, but rather, it is constantly remade as the person interacts with others. In a dramaturgical model,
social interaction A social relation or also described as a social interaction or social experience is the fundamental unit of analysis within the social sciences, and describes any voluntary or involuntary interpersonal relationship between two or more individuals ...
is analyzed in terms of how people live their lives, like actors performing on a stage.Macionis, John J., and Linda M. Gerber. 2010. ''Sociology'' (7th Canadian ed.). Toronto: Pearson Canada Inc. This analysis offers a look at the concepts of ''status'', which is like a part in a play; and ''
role A role (also rôle or social role) is a set of connected behaviors, rights, moral obligation, obligations, beliefs, and social norm, norms as conceptualized by people in a social situation. It is an expected or free or continuously changing behavi ...
'', which serves as a script, supplying dialogue and action for the characters. Just as on the stage, people in their everyday lives manage settings, clothing, words, and nonverbal actions to give a particular impression to others. Goffman described each individual's "performance" as the ''presentation of self''; a person's efforts to create specific impressions in the minds of others. This process is also sometimes called ''
impression management Impression management is a conscious or subconscious process in which people attempt to influence the perceptions of other people about a person, object or event by regulating and controlling information in social interaction.Sanaria, A. D. (2016). ...
''. Goffman makes an important distinction between ''front stage'' behaviour, which are actions that are visible to the audience and are part of the performance; and ''back stage'' behavior, which are actions that people engage in when no audience is present. For example, a server in a restaurant is likely to perform one way in front of customers but might be much more casual in the kitchen. It is likely that he or she does things in the kitchen that might seem unseemly in front of customers. Before interaction with another, an individual prepares a role, or impression, that he or she wants to make on the other. These roles are subject to what is, in theater, termed ''
breaking character In theatre (especially in the illusionistic Western tradition), breaking character occurs when an actor ceases to maintain the illusion that they are identical with the character they are portraying. This is a more acceptable occurrence while in ...
''. Inopportune intrusions may occur in which a backstage performance is interrupted by someone who is not meant to see it. In addition, there are examples of how the audience for any personal performance plays a part in determining the course it takes: how typically we ignore many performance flaws out of tact, such as if someone trips or spits as they speak. Within dramaturgy analysis, teams are groups of individuals who cooperate with each other in order to share the 'party line.' Team members must share information as mistakes reflect on everyone. Team members also have inside knowledge and are not fooled by one another's performances.Moody, James. c. 2003.
Goffman: The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
" Classical Sociological Theory ociology 782 OH: Ohio State University. Archived from th
original
on 2007-05-20.


Perinbanayagam's dramaturgical theory


Performance

There are seven important elements Goffman identifies with respect to the performance: # Belief in the part that one is playing: Belief is important, even if it cannot be judged by others; the audience can only try to guess whether the performer is sincere or cynical. # The front (or "mask"): a standardized, generalizable, and transferable technique for the performer to control the manner in which the audience perceives them. We all put on different masks throughout our lives. # Dramatic realization: a portrayal of aspects of the performer that they want the audience to know. When the performer wants to stress something, they will carry on the dramatic realization, e.g. showing how accomplished one is when going on a date to make a good first impression. # Idealization: a performance often presents an idealized view of the situation to avoid confusion (misrepresentation) and strengthen other elements (e.g., fronts, dramatic realization). Audiences often have an 'idea' of what a given situation (performance) should look like, and performers will try to carry out the performance according to that idea. # Maintenance of expressive control: the need to stay 'in character'. The performance has to make sure that they send out the correct signals, as well as silencing the occasional compulsion to convey misleading ones that might detract from the performance. # Misrepresentation: the danger of conveying a wrong message. The audience tends to think of a performance as genuine or false, and performers generally wish to avoid having an audience disbelieve them (whether they are being truly genuine or not). # Mystification: the concealment of certain information from the audience, whether to increase the audience's interest in the user or to avoid divulging information which could be damaging to the performer.


Stages

Stages or regions refer to the three distinct areas where different individuals with different roles and information can be found. There are three stages: front, back, and outside.


Front stage

Within society, individuals are expected to present themselves in a certain way; however, when a person goes against the norm, society tends to notice. Therefore, individuals are expected to put on a costume and act differently when in front of the 'audience'. Goffman noticed this habit of society and developed the idea of front stage. In his book ''
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life ''The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life'' is a 1956 sociology, sociological book by Erving Goffman, in which the author uses the imagery of theatre in order to portray the importance of Social relation, human social interaction; this approac ...
'', Goffman defines ''front'' as "that part of the individual's performance which regularly functions in a general and fixed fashion we define the situation for those who observe the performance. Front, then, is the expressive equipment of a standard kind intentionally or unwittingly employed by the individual during his performance."Goffman, Erving. 1956. ''
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life ''The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life'' is a 1956 sociology, sociological book by Erving Goffman, in which the author uses the imagery of theatre in order to portray the importance of Social relation, human social interaction; this approac ...
''. New York: Doubleday.
During the front stage, the actor formally performs and adheres to conventions that have meaning to the audience. It is a part of the dramaturgical performance that is consistent and contains generalized ways to explain the situation or role the actor is playing to the audience that observes it. The actor knows that they are being watched and acts accordingly. This is a fixed presentation. This concept can be seen in the film '' Waiting...'' (2005), in which the servers have to act much more proper and presentable in the dining room than they do in the kitchen. Goffman explains that the front stage involves a differentiation between ''setting'' and ''personal front'', two concepts that are necessary for the actor to have a successful performance. Setting is the scene that must be present in order for the actor to perform; if it is gone, the actor cannot perform. Personal front consists of items or equipment needed in order to perform. These items are usually identifiable by the audience as a constant representation of the performance and actor. The personal front is divided into two different aspects: # appearance, which refers to the items of the personal front that are a reflection of the actor's social status; and #
manners Etiquette () is the set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a ...
, which refers to the way an actor conducts themselves. The actor's manner tells the audience what to expect from their performance.


Back stage

In ''
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life ''The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life'' is a 1956 sociology, sociological book by Erving Goffman, in which the author uses the imagery of theatre in order to portray the importance of Social relation, human social interaction; this approac ...
'', Goffman explains that the ''back stage'' is where "the performer can relax; he can drop his front, forgo speaking in his lines, and step out of character." When the individual returns to the back stage, they feel a sense of relief knowing the actions that would not be condoned in the front stage are free to be expressed. In the backstage, actions are not to please anyone but the self. Back stage is where performers are present but audience is not, hence the performers can step out of character without fear of disrupting the performance. It is where various kinds of informal actions, or facts suppressed in the front stage, may appear. Simply put, the back stage is completely separate from the front stage, and it is where the performance of a routine is prepared. No members of the audience may appear in the back, and the actor takes many methods to ensure this. ''Back region'' is a relative term, in that it exists only in regards to a specific audience: where two or more people are present, there will almost never be a true 'back region'.


Off-stage

Outside, or off-stage, is the place where individuals who are outsiders are not involved in the performance (although they may not be aware of it). The off-stage is where individual actors meet the audience members independently of the team performance on the front stage. Specific performances may be given when the audience is segmented as such.


Borders/regions

Borders, or boundaries, are important as they prevent or restrict movement of individuals between various regions. Performers need to be able to maneuver boundaries to manage who has the access to the performance, when and how. The border phenomenon is highlighted by
Victor Turner Victor Witter Turner (28 May 1920 – 18 December 1983) was a British cultural anthropologist best known for his work on symbols, rituals, and rites of passage. His work, along with that of Clifford Geertz and others, is often referred to as ...
's concept of
liminality In anthropology, liminality () is the quality of ambiguity or disorientation that occurs in the middle stage of a rite of passage, when participants no longer hold their pre-ritual status but have not yet begun the transition to the status they w ...
, and thus prolonged in the imaginable field:
semiotics Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...
of
ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, b ...
. The management of thresholds may be operated on several axes; the most crude is exclusion-inclusion, similar to the basic digital on-off (1 – 0). To be a part or not may be seen as the fundamental asset in a society, but as far society is perceived as a
rhizomatic In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hor ...
conglomerate, rather such than a unitary or arborescent whole. Border-control, so to speak, becomes in a paradoxical fashion ''the'' central issue. Thus the study of liminality in sociology, ritual and theatre reveals the fictional elements underpinning society.
Rites of passage A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual of the passage which occurs when an individual leaves one group to enter another. It involves a significant change of status in society. In cultural anthropology the term is the Anglicisation of ''rite ...
seem to reflect this as the enactments of exclusion, and dissociation seem to be an essential feature of such. The enactment of exclusion from a society seem to be essential for the formation of an imaginary central governing (
cf. The abbreviation ''cf.'' (short for the la, confer/conferatur, both meaning "compare") is used in writing to refer the reader to other material to make a comparison with the topic being discussed. Style guides recommend that ''cf.'' be used onl ...
Michel Foucault Paul-Michel Foucault (, ; ; 15 October 192625 June 1984) was a French philosopher, historian of ideas, writer, political activist, and literary critic. Foucault's theories primarily address the relationship between power and knowledge, and how ...
).


Discrepant roles

Many performances need to prevent the audience from getting some information (secrets). For that, several specialized roles are created.


Secrets

There are different types of secrets that have to be concealed for various reasons: * Dark secrets: represent information about the performing team which could contradict the image the team is presenting to the audience. * Strategic secrets: represent the team's goals, capabilities and know-hows which allows the team to control the audience and lead it in the direction the team desires. * Inside secrets: represent information known by the team and are seen as something that is shared only with other teammates to increase team bonding. * Entrusted secrets: secrets have to be kept in order to maintain the role and team integrity; keeping them demonstrates trustworthiness. * Free secrets: the secrets of another, unrelated to oneself, that can be disclosed while still maintaining the role. Disclosure of such secrets should not affect the performance.


Roles

There are three basic roles in Goffman's scheme, each centered on who has access to what information: performers are most knowledgeable; audiences know only what the performers disclosed and what they have observed themselves; and outsiders have little if any relevant information. These roles can be divided into three groups:


Communication out of character

Performers may communicate out of character on purpose, in order to signal to others on their team, or by accident. Common backstage out-of-character communications include: * Treatment of the absent: derogatory discussion of the absent audience or performers affecting team cohesion. * Staging talk: discussion of technical aspects of the performance, gossip. Common frontstage communications out of character include: * Team
collusion Collusion is a deceitful agreement or secret cooperation between two or more parties to limit open competition by deceiving, misleading or defrauding others of their legal right. Collusion is not always considered illegal. It can be used to att ...
: between team members, during the performance but not endangering it. Example: staging cues, kicking a friend under a table. * Realigning actions: between members of opposing teams. For example: unofficial grumbling.


Impression management

''
Impression management Impression management is a conscious or subconscious process in which people attempt to influence the perceptions of other people about a person, object or event by regulating and controlling information in social interaction.Sanaria, A. D. (2016). ...
'' refers to work on maintaining the desired impression, and is composed of defensive and protective techniques. Protective techniques are used in order to cover mistakes, only once the interaction begins. For example, relying on audience to use tact and overlook mistakes of the performers. In contrast, defensive techniques are employed before an interaction begins, and involves: * Dramaturgical
loyalty Loyalty, in general use, is a devotion and faithfulness to a nation, cause, philosophy, country, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another h ...
: work to keep the team members loyal to the team members and to the performance itself. * Dramaturgical
discipline Discipline refers to rule following behavior, to regulate, order, control and authority. It may also refer to punishment. Discipline is used to create habits, routines, and automatic mechanisms such as blind obedience. It may be inflicted on ot ...
: dedicating oneself to the performance but without losing oneself in it. Self-control, making sure one can play the part properly, rehearsal. * Dramaturgical circumspection: minimizing risk by preparing for expected problems. Being careful to avoid situations where a mistake or a potential problem can occur, choosing the right audience, length and venue of performance.


Criticism

Believing that theories should not be applied where they have not been tested, it has been argued that dramaturgy should only be applied in instances that involve people associated with a
total institution A total institution is a place of work and residence where a great number of similarly situated people, cut off from the wider community for a considerable time, together lead an enclosed, formally administered round of life. Privacy is limited in ...
, for which the theory was designed. In addition to this, it also has been said that dramaturgy does not contribute to sociology's goal of understanding the legitimacy of
society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...
. It is claimed to be drafting on
positivism Positivism is an empiricist philosophical theory that holds that all genuine knowledge is either true by definition or positive—meaning ''a posteriori'' facts derived by reason and logic from sensory experience.John J. Macionis, Linda M. G ...
, which does not offer an interest in both reason and rationality. John Welsh called it a "commodity."Welsh, John. 1990. ''Dramaturgical Analysis and Societal Critique''. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers.


Application

Research on dramaturgy is best done through
fieldwork Field research, field studies, or fieldwork is the collection of raw data outside a laboratory, library, or workplace setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines. For example, biologists who conduct fie ...
such as
participant observation Participant observation is one type of data collection method by practitioner-scholars typically used in qualitative research and ethnography. This type of methodology is employed in many disciplines, particularly anthropology (incl. cultural an ...
. For one, dramaturgy has been used to depict how social movements communicate power. Robert D. Benford and Scott A. Hunt argued that "
social movements A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a Social issue, social or political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to resist or undo one. It is a type of Group ...
can be described as dramas in which protagonists and antagonists compete to affect audiences' interpretations of power relations in a variety of domains." The people seeking power present their front stage self in order to captivate attention. However, the back stage self is still present, though undetectable. This is a competition of power, a prime example of dramaturgy. A useful, and everyday way of understanding dramaturgy (specifically front stage and back stage) is to think of a waiter or waitress at a restaurant. Their main avenue of concern for him or her is "customer service." Even if a customer is rude, waiters and/or waitresses are expected to be polite ("the customer is always right") as part of their job responsibilities. That same waiter or waitress speaks differently when going out to her/his break room. s/he may complain, mimic and discuss with their fellow peers how irritating and rude the customer is. In this example, the waiter/waitress acts a certain way when dealing with customers and acts a completely different way when with her/his fellow employees. Dramaturgy has also been applied to the emerging interdisciplinary domain of scholarly research known as
technoself Technoself studies, commonly referred to as TSS, is an emerging, interdisciplinarity domain of scholarly research dealing with all aspects of human identity in a technological societyLuppicini pp. 1–25 focusing on the changing nature of relati ...
studies, which deals with human identity in a technological society. In terms of social media profiles, users and their followers share a social space online. Social media users create profiles and post things that are specifically curated to portray a certain image that they want their followers to see. Often times this curated image is a facade. This is an “authoritative performance” of ones lifestyle. A dynamic is created between the user and their followers where the user is in control of how and what represents them, while the followers are spectators to this presentation of the user's self but they themselves are also presenting themselves in the same way. Dramaturgy can also be applied to all aspects of theatre performers.


See also

*
Epistemic virtue The epistemic virtues, as identified by virtue epistemologists, reflect their contention that belief is an ethical process, and thus susceptible to the intellectual virtue or vice of one's own life and personal experiences. Some epistemic virtues h ...
*
Character mask In Marxist philosophy, a character mask (german: Charaktermaske) is a prescribed social role which conceals the contradictions of a social relation or order. The term was used by Karl Marx in published writings from the 1840s to the 1860s, and ...
*
Role engulfment In labeling theory, role engulfment refers to how a person's identity becomes based on a role the person assumes, superseding other roles. A negative role such as " sick" can serve to constrict a person's self-image. Professions Jungians have h ...
*
Signalling theory Within evolutionary biology, signalling theory is a body of theoretical work examining communication between individuals, both within species and across species. The central question is when organisms with conflicting interests, such as in sex ...


References


Further reading

* Brissett, Dennis, and Charles Edgley, eds. 1990. ''Life as Theater: A Dramaturgical Source Book'' (2nd ed.). New York: Walter de Gruyter. * Cohen, Robert. 2004.
Role Distance: On Stage and On the Merry-Go-Round
" ''Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism''. *Edgley, Charles, ed. 2013. ''The Drama of Social Life: A Dramaturgical Handbook''. UK: Ashgate Publishing Co. * Goffman, Erving. 1959. ''
The Presentation of Self In Everyday Life ''The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life'' is a 1956 sociology, sociological book by Erving Goffman, in which the author uses the imagery of theatre in order to portray the importance of Social relation, human social interaction; this approac ...
''. New York: Doubleday.


External links

* Goffman, Erving.
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life: The Main Argument, and the Starting Assumption
"
The Glamour of Motives: Applications of Kenneth Burke within the Sociological Field
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dramaturgy (Sociology) Interpersonal relationships Symbolic interactionism Erving Goffman Everyday life