This is a continuation from the other three pages.
Of the many broad catergories of events, or scenes, that comprise the daily round of Western Apache life, I shall deal here only with those that are coterninous with what Goffman (1961, 1964) has termed "focused gatherings" or "encounters." The concept situation, in keeping with established usage, will refer inclusively to the location of such a gathering, its physical setting, its point in time, the standing behavior patterns that accompany it, and the social attributes of the person involved (Hymes 1962, 1964; Ervin-Tripp 1964, 1967).
In what follows, however, I will be mainly concerned with the roles and statuses of participants. The reason for this is that the critical factor in the Apache's decision to speak or keep silent seems always to be the nature of his relationships to other people. To be sure, other features of the situation are significant, but apparently only to the extent that they influence the perception of statues and role. What this implies, of course, is that roles and statuses are not fixed attributes. Although they may be depicted as such in a static model (and often with a good reason), they are appraised and acted uupon in particular social contexts and, as a result, subject to redefinition and variation. With this in mind, let us now turn our attention to the Western Apache and the types of situations in which, as one of my informants put it, "it is right to give up on words."
Background provided by:
