Dmitri N. Shalin, "Erving Manuel Goffman: Biographical Sources of Sociological Imagination" (Routledge, 2024)

Dmitri Shalin's biography, *Erving Manuel Goffman: Biographical Sources of Sociological Imagination*, explores Goffman's life and its profound influence on his sociological theories. Shalin discusses Goffman's Russian-Jewish heritage and how experiences with social stigmas, including anti-Semitism and his height, shaped Goffman's sensitivity to impression management and self-presentation. The podcast highlights Goffman's academic journey, his complex relationship with sociology, and his evolving views on mental health, influenced by his wife's struggles. Shalin also examines Goffman's fieldwork in Las Vegas, his interest in gambling as a microcosm of social interaction, and his later work on gender, revealing shifts and continuities in Goffman's perspectives.