Own like someone else's

The daily world is permeated with unlocking messages. We send and read them dozens every minute. Without them, social life would have lost its connectedness and non -prosperity. To understand the architecture of human interactions, sociologists have to move away from them, to make it clear incomprehensible. Actually, the sociology of everyday life began with this.

The legend says that she owes her emergence to Prince P.A. Kropotkin.

Once in London, the young anthropologist A.R. Radcliff-Braun, carried away by anarchism and dreaming of reforming the modern Victorian society. Kropotkin's advice was simple:

“To reform society, it is necessary to study it; It is better to study primitive forms of social organization. ”

So Radcliff-Braun became interested in the study of primitive tribes, and then left the idea of ​​studying modern public way.

Twenty years later, the novice Chicago Anthropologist William Warner addressed the same issue to Radcliffe-Brown. In response, Radcliff-Brown repeated the advice that he had once received from Kropotkin, recommending to start with primitive societies-in other words, "to practice on cats." However, unlike Radcliffe Brown, Warner did not leave his student intention-he soon returned to the United States to study the festive rituals and everyday practices of the American city. At the same time, he did not stop being an anthropologist, and described the everyday life of his fellow tribesmen as if it were an outlandish overseas tribe: instead of violent dancing - salon conversations, instead of enemies - hunting trophies, instead of victorious cries - festive salutes.

Since then, of course, the sociology of everyday life has far gone from the anthropological metaphor. But one remains unchanged:

The requirement to treat his own as a stranger, to the usual - as a mysterious, to routine - as an unusual one.

Therefore, when the next time you find yourself in the front seat of the minibus, watch the gestures of "preparing for the exit."

I am sitting in a minibus in the front seat near the door. Nearby is a girl. “Stop at the bus stop,” she says, and I already know that now I will have to go out and release it. Communication took place. The phrase was addressed to the driver, but served as a signal to both of us. The driver "counted" his part of the message - I am his own. He stopped, I opened the door.

Another time, the situation is repeated. Again, I manage to take a place next to the door. And again you need to release a passenger sitting between me and the driver. But only this time the girl was ahead, and the phrase “Stop the cross” sounded from the salon. So the unspoken message - “I am going out now, so you have to let me out” - was not sent. The driver will stop, but how to make it clear to me that she needs to go out? Repeat "Stop the intersection"? This can cause irritation of the driver - no one loves excessive signals in our age overloaded with information. Ask: “You are not going out now”? This phrase, appropriate in the subway or bus, will sound strangely in a minibus.

The girl puts her handbag on her knees and slightly turns the body to the exit. All. The message is sent. I confirm its receipt by putting my hand on the door handle. The decision found was unlikely to be given to her by long thoughts - I’m not sure that she even noticed her own gesture. However, a lot of passengers in similar circumstances would have acted absolutely the same.

Viktor Vakhstein - Head of the Department of Theoretical Sociology and Epistemology of the Presidential Academy (RANEPA), sociologist.