Neighborhood as Theater: Building a Goffmanian Framework for Comparative Urban Ethnography

While the history of urban sociology features myriad detailed descriptions of neighborhood life reflecting various theoretical, political, and practical purposes, the field lacks general templates for conducting in-depth neighborhood research and comparison. In this paper, as a remedy, we propose a Goffmanian framework for qualitative neighborhood description and analysis which we call "neighborhood as theater." While revisiting previous ethnographic research of two neighborhoods in Hollywood, Los Angeles, conducted in the late 1990s, we argue that local social life operates along three main dramaturgical axes—sets, characters, and performances—each divided into several subcategories. These three focal points reveal observable, yet easily overlooked, key elements of neighborhood life besides illuminating broader, structural aspects and connections. We argue that conceptualizing neighborhoods “as theater" offers a general template for ethnographic urban research that can advance comparative and critical spatial analysis while remaining grounded in meaning-centered, embodied experiences of mundane local life.