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6 - Unpacking Packing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 January 2023

By
Anna Lindström  and
Barbara Fox
Edited by
Barbara Fox ,
Lorenza Mondada  and
Marja-Leena Sorjonen
Barbara Fox
Affiliation:
University of Colorado Boulder
Lorenza Mondada
Affiliation:
University of Basel
Marja-Leena Sorjonen
Affiliation:
University of Helsinki
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Summary

The chapter examine a normative orientations of packing items at a farmer’s market in Sweden. It shows that the orientations to who should pack and under what circumstances reveal the deeply moral and interactional character of packing. While customers are expected to pack most items on their own, bulk items – such as potatoes – are normatively packed by the seller. When these norms are violated, such as when customers ask to pack their own potatoes, moral indignation may result. The study further examines instances in which the seller displays difficulty in packing; customers’ careful offers of assistance in these cases display an orientation to the autonomy of the seller and call into question the universal desirability of offers of assistance.

Keywords

packing itemsbulk itemsmorality of packinginteractional character of packingoffers of assistanceSweden
Type
Chapter
Information
Encounters at the Counter
The Organization of Shop Interactions
 , pp. 184 - 213
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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References

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