Essay Sample about Social Order

Individuals frequently refer to the concept of social order as the way they perform their everyday activities and perceive the changes in their environment. From the perspective of Erving Goffman and Michel Foucault these two figures contribute to the understanding of how society functions and the analysis of social order however, they both depict the functions of society differently. According to Erving Goffman, he views social order primarily based upon the way individuals interact with each other depending on their social situation. Whereas Foucault focuses on how specific authorities and sources of information influence the social order. Therefore, this essay will examine both sociologist approaches towards social order and how both of their contributions share similar characteristics due to the concept of interaction. Consequently, one could argue Goffman’s theory is prevalent in today’s world due to the aspects of social media and how individuals present themselves in their environment. In contrast, Foucault panopticon theory speaks of observing individuals through surveillance cameras which has become more normalized through our society over the years.

Through an analysis of these two figures, the text will present different ways of looking at social ordering and individuals place in a human society. Firstly, it will demonstrate how Goffman and Foucault approach the subject of social order, and how humans present themselves in society. Erving Goffman’s presentation of self is demonstrated in everyday life. He emphasizes how a person presents themselves in certain situations. For instance, this is known as the “social change” when individuals change their actions depending on their social situation which is very similar to performers and actors. The “social stage” is where people are best understood as actors who intentionally construct an impression of themselves for the advantage of an audience. For example, consider how you act around your family versus how you act with your friends or in your workplace environment. Your family members, coworkers, and friends are likely to perceive different sides of you even if you’re not intentionally trying to change your personality. Therefore, Goffman presented the term “impression management” to describe this concept which displays how individuals present themselves to others as we hope to be depicted as. Furthermore, Goffman has also introduced the term the “front” to display how individuals create a certain version of ourselves. Individuals construct their “front stage” by altering the setting in which they perform. On these social stages, we adopt role in relation to other team members and carefully regulate the impressions we project in order to fit in with society and to attain our own personal objectives.

For example, when it comes to my personal life, I am constantly engaging in impression management. There are certain versions of myself that I present in particular social situations. When I am at work, I act very professional, and dedicated to my job but when I’m with my family or friends, I’m much more relaxed and outgoing. As a result, when individuals feel free of the expectations and norms that dictate our behavior in our environment they are engaging in “backstage” behaviours. Given this, individuals tend to act more relax and reflect their true selves. Furthermore, as social media has advanced, over the years more people have begun to communicate through social media by sharing personal content. I have witnessed many forms of impression management. For example, when I post on social media, I am only showing the more desirable traits of my life. Therefore, social media has turned into a highlight realm which can be very detrimental to individuals’ mental health. We are constantly trying to show our “perfect life” to our followers when in reality we can perceive our life to be much more desirable through the perspective of our phones. Consequently, individuals tend to portray their front stage selves on social media and suppress their backstage version of themselves which creates unrealistic expectations.