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study is a sociological one, and it has been one of my aims throughout to
account for facework not from a linguistic, psychological, or discourse studies
perspective, but from a sociological one. For this reason, as I pointed out in the
previous chapter, my primary interest is not in which particular linguistic
strategies are employed in the doing of positive or negative alignment as
facework, or what self-perceptions or affective states may be influencing the
individual and his I her behaviour, but rather in how the self as a social
phenomenon is mobilised and aligned in and as sociable conversation. In short,
a major aim has been to gain some sort of conceptual and analytical handle on
the self as a fundamental component in the playing out of what manifests itself
as equilibric sociability. This chapter then will be devoted to the identification
and explication of the self. Specifically ,I shall attempt to identify, capture, and
illustrate those 'sociable selves' that are routinely mobilised as part and parcel
of facework as alignment in sociable episodes.
I shall begin by considering the Goffman (1967,1969,1971) informed
concept of the self that is employed in this study (7.1). Here I shall focus
particularly on the analytical purchase afforded by the 'duel' reading of the self,
as both sociable 'players' and 'images'. Following this I shall identify certain
sociable selves routinely mobilised in sociable episodes by English and German
participants in their respective milieus (7.2). The aim here will be to present a
selection of salient sociable selves which allow participants to engage in the
alignment practices demonstrated in the previous chapter. In order to evidence
these selves as they are mobilised by participants as part and parcel of their
sociability, I shall again present instances of conversational interaction drawn
from sociable episodes in both milieu, considering in turn selves commonly
mobilised for both positive (7.3) and negative (7.4) alignments. I shall then
discuss the findings presented, with particular reference to the relationship
between sociable selves in each culture and their prevailing sociable styles and
positive social values. Finally I shall conclude the chapter (7.5).
Whereas the previous chapter sought to evidence the sociable
contingencies identified by the facework as alignment framework advanced in
Chapter 3, this chapter seeks to draw and evidence the central sociological
concept guiding this study - that of the 'self'. I shall make reference to 191