Erving Goffman

Erving Goffman (June 11, 1922 – November 19, 1982), was a Canadian sociologist and writer. The 73rd president of American Sociological Association, Goffman's greatest contribution to social theory is his study of symbolic interaction in the form of dramaturgical perspective that began with his 1959 book The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life and was developed throughout his life expanding to the topics of deference and demeanor. Goffman was born to Max and Anne Goffman in Manville, Alberta on June 11, 1922. Goffman attended St. John's Technical High School, Dauphin around 1937 and studied chemistry in University of Manitoba, 1939, received his B.A. at the University of Toronto in 1945 and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1949 and 1953. He was married to Angelica Choate in 1952, with whom he had one son, Tom. Angelica committed suicide in 1964. In 1981 he married the Canadian linguist Gillian Sankoff, with whom he had a daughter, Alice. His sister, Frances... full article at wikipedia