Whos that in the mirror?

So, who is that in the mirror I dont know, do you? Well that depends. Where are you going? What are you taking with you? What audience are you performing for? In 1959, Erving Goffman, a pioneer in social interaction, proposed an intriguing theory regarding impression management. He claims that when an individual plays a part, he implicitly requests his observers to believe that the character they see actually possesses the attributes he appears to possess and that, in general, matters are what they appear to be. (Goffman, 1959). Impression management is a goal-directed conscious or unconscious process in which people attempt to influence the perceptions of other people about a person, object or event; they do so by regulating and controlling information in social interaction (Piwinger & Ebert 2001). Goffman relates impression management to a theatrical production in which the performer (person) acts out a role (self) on a stage (setting) with the assistance of expressive equipment (personal fronts) with the intention of persuading others into believing a certain impression (self). He goes on to define two extremes in which an actor believes his own act (sincerity), or is explicitly aware of the faade he puts up (cynicism). What interests me most is this underlying concept of self-perception and self-actualization. Goffmans analogy highlights the fact that people will take on multiple impressions, or selves, in order to further their interests. However, especially in the case of the sincere performer, what is ones actual self, or true self? What we see from Goffmans analysis is that ones true self is that of deception. He argues the likeliness of social interaction to a congame and ones action of image management as a means to get something from others. This rationale leads us to believe that any given persons true self is intentionally and permanently selfish. I disagree. The true self is the undefined, amorphous core in ones persona. It has no shape or image, but does have magnitude. This core is dynamic and is affected by ones perception of societys perception of him. These changes happen instantaneously and feel natural, or of ones own will, thus creating a sense of self-actualization. And so, by nature, an actual self is not selfish, but acts in rational self-interest. We see this highlighted in The Impact of Internet Communication on Social interaction by Thomas Brignal and Thomas Valey. He notes that the strength of the internet of the future is the fact that individuals can choose with whom they want to interact. (Brignal & Valey 2005) In other words, individuals choose to interact or not to interact with someone because it is in their self-interest. Another prime example is in Code of the Street by Elijah Anderson. In urban environments, less alienated youth take up a street oriented demeanor in order to express themselves, not because it is necessary for survival, thus acting in self-interest and self-satisfactory way.