Civil Inattention

A detailed Summary of Civil Inattention

Every time we enter a public place we engage in some sort of social interaction. This is a part of our everyday life. Certain public settings are even created for the sole purpose of social interaction. The Study Hall bar in Isla Vista is one such place. Most people go to this bar to get drunk, and to interact with friends or among the unacquainted. Throughout my many visits to the Study Hall, I observed multiple kinds of social transmissions. These interactions between bar patrons varied from positive to negative discussions and were influenced by not only gender but social status also. In the following pages to come I will discuss and analyze social interactions between certain individuals and analytically breakdown some of the conversations that were occurring during my visits. The following analysis will explain what sorts of interactions take place inside of a bar, and will examine the effects that alcohol has on a person engaging in conversation with the known and unknown.

Many concepts will be used to explain and analyze the social transmissions at the Study Hall. After observing many different situations and interactions at the bar, I was able to apply concepts that were used in lecture and throughout the

Civil Inattention and Anonymous Relationships

Male: How bout a vodka collins...or tonic?

Construction of Conversation/Adjacency Pairs

"People who are distinctive in a group, such as the only African American or the only woman, are often subjected to intense scrutiny from others" (Saenz, 149). When certain individuals are pinpointed as being the minority of the group, they are the token or the person that stands out in the setting (Saenz, 149). When a person is classified as the token of the group, much attention is placed on this person on how they perform and it can easily have a negative outcome. During one of my observations at the Study Hall, I focused primarily on the effects a setting can have on a individual, especially when alcohol is involved. With the presidential election on people's minds, the popular topic of conversation has been politics. Politics can be a very touchy subject can be a very touchy subject especially at a university where many students are involved and take their political beliefs very seriously. One individual in particular was slightly intoxicated and was very outspoken about the election. As he mentioned whom he voted for, he was instantly scrutinized for his choice of candidate. During this time, the Study Hall was filled with younger democratic liberals who strongly opposed George W. Bush. When the intoxicated individual spoke highly of Bush, he obviously became the minority or token of the group. His performance was now closely paid close attention to as others listened to him as he tried to explain his reasons for his beliefs. "Under certain conditions, this heightened social attention can lead to improved performance" (Saenz, 149). Rather than improved performance, the treatment he received from the majority group proved to be fatal. On top of his political beliefs, the alcohol played a major role in this individual's downfall. He was unable to defend himself in a proper manner as the alcohol had affected his ability to reason properly. Even though he was not a minority of a racial, ethnic, or gender group, he was still a member of what was a distinctive group at the time because his party was overwhelmingly underrepresented. This interaction and conversation was one-sided in the sense that the outspoken male was outnumbered and therefore was unable to have a fair chance to represent his group. For someone to fairly represent them self, the process of conversation must be distributed evenly.

Female: Well I don't really want beer so I guess I'll have so

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Approximate Word count = 1708
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: People