The paper analyses the possible influences of the Austrian phenomenologist Gustav Ichheiser on the work of Erving Goffman. It emphasizes, mainly, the scope of failure and misunderstandings in both social and individual relations. We establish connections to the notion of negotiation of the reality and to other relevant authors towards the development of this line of reflection, such as Georg Simmel, William James, William Thomas, and Alfred Schutz.
Interactionism; Phenomenology; Misunderstanding; Subjectivity