Irving Goffman

"The performance of self begins in childhood and continues until death."

"Understanding others requires recognizing the performances they must maintain."

"Society grants us freedom only insofar as we maintain acceptable performances."

"The self is neither a fixed entity nor a complete illusion but something in between."

"Our greatest anxieties arise from situations where we cannot adequately perform our identities."

"The study of how people present themselves reveals the fundamental structure of society."

"We are all essentially frauds engaged in managed deception for social survival."

"The success of any social group depends on members' willingness to maintain its performances."

"Personal dignity is often less about who we really are and more about who we successfully claim to be."

"The collapse of social performance indicates either breakdown or radical authenticity."

"We are all performers on the stage of social life, whether we realize it or not."

"The presentation of self is a fundamental aspect of human interaction."

"We manage impressions constantly, creating different versions of ourselves for different audiences."

"Social life requires us to maintain face, both our own and that of others."

"The backstage and frontstage of our lives reveal different truths about who we are."

"We engage in impression management every single day without conscious effort."

"Stigma defines people in ways that can be profoundly limiting and damaging."

"Total institutions strip away individual identity and reconstruct the self."

"The rules of interaction are learned and reinforced through social experience."

"Embarrassment is a moment when our managed impressions break down."

"We all have a sense of what is appropriate in different social settings."

"Language itself is a performance, carefully chosen for effect."

"The self is not something fixed but something we create through interaction."

"Rituals and routines give structure and meaning to everyday life."

"We interpret the behavior of others based on the cues they provide."

"Frame analysis helps us understand how meaning is constructed in society."

"The way we define situations becomes the reality we live in."

"Interaction order is maintained through small moments of civility and respect."

"Public behavior differs drastically from private behavior for all individuals."

"We learn to read social situations through accumulated experience."