 Despite his influence , according to Fine and Manning there are " remarkably few scholars who are continuing his work " , nor has there been a " Goffman school " ; thus , his impact on social theory has been simultaneously " great and modest " . Fine and Manning attribute the lack of subsequent Goffman @-@ style research and writing to the nature of his signature style , which they consider very difficult to duplicate ( even " mimic @-@ proof " ) , and also to his writing style and subjects not being widely valued in the social sciences . With regard to his style , Fine and Manning remark that he tends to be seen either as a scholar whose style is difficult to reproduce , and therefore daunting to those who might wish to emulate his style , or as a scholar whose work was transitional , bridging the work of the Chicago school and that of contemporary sociologists , and thus of less interest to sociologists than the classics of either of those two groups . With regard to his subjects , Fine and Manning observe that the topic of behavior in public places is often <unk> as being trivial , and thus unworthy of serious scholarly attention . 
