SA21 Fieldworks: SA21 T - Pajamas in Public

Marianne Stephanie Guevara

Maria Paz Ingrid Laurel

SA21 (T) BREACHING PROJECT:

Pajamas in Public

What norm did you violate?

The norm that we violated was of the typical “everyday dress code”. While the type of clothes that an individual may choose to wear during an average day will vary from person to person, there is a unspoken rule of what isn’t really acceptable to wear out in public during the day. One of those types of clothing is pajamas. Pajamas are considered to be strictly nightwear and its use to be restricted in the home for sleeping.

What was the activity? Where did you do it?

For our activity, in order to challenge the unspoken norm of acceptable daytime wear we spent the entire day outside the house in pajamas. We made sure to visit sites where socialization is abundant and people frequent to, almost daily. Our two main sites for the activity were in Select Shell gas station and UP Town Center.

What were the different reactions from people? Why do you think they reacted this way? What caused these reactions? Did the deviant act re-affirm/ reinforce the existing norms based on these reactions?

Mia: In Shell Select there weren’t any strong reactions from the people there. I bought from a milk tea stand and from the grocery itself and the transactions were normal. Most people did double takes and i did not notice any staring. People seemed a bit uncomfortable to be around me. The deviant act reaffirmed the existing norms about attire in public to an extent. People noticed what I was wearing because it was different but since the venue was more relaxed, there wasn’t any obvious reactions.

Marianne: As soon as I left my house I began to receive several reactions. My neighbor was outside her home as I was leaving and once she looked at me she started to smile and chuckle. My mother was with me at the time and our neighbor addressed her, commenting on my choice of wearing pajamas today. As I was leaving the gate, an attendant that we are familiar with looked at me and noticing my pajamas smiled a bit awkwardly. I believe that he noticed I was a uncomfortable because he said in a reassuring tone that “it looks good”, it referring to my attire. Once I was in UP Town Center there weren’t any verbal reactions, considering that I was passing by complete strangers and each individual and/or group was making their way to their own business. However, I did receive several looks from many people, from various demographics: young and old, men and women, etc. They were quick looks but noticeable nevertheless. I also noticed that a teenage girl after having looked at me whispered to her friends and a quick fit of giggling would ensue. This occured twice during my entire stay at UP Town Center. Based on the various reactions I received, I can attest that this particular deviant act does reaffirm existing norms about acceptable daywear. Not only did I have verbal comments addressed to me and my mother questioning my choice of clothing (pajamas) but the average stranger was willing to divert his/her attention to me for even a small amount of time because of my clothing choice. These reactions never occured when I was going through the day in my typical everyday clothes.

Aside from norms, what SA themes are at play for people to react in a certain way?

Mia: We chose two contrasting venues to perform the experiments in order to observe the differences between social classes, age groups,and overall environment. Therefore, the concept of lifeworlds can apply to the discussion of this activity. Select is within a gas station so the venue is open to anyone passing by the area while UPTC is a shopping mall and is considered more “upper class”. Furthermore, the people in Select were almost all adults that were either grabbing lunch or resting between drives. The people in UP Town Center, on the other hand, has a more varied age group, as there are colleges near by. There were less reactions in Shell probably because the open environment makes it more inclusive as compared to malls such as UPTC. The staff seemed like they were not bothered by my wearing of pajamas because people go there in casual attire throughout the day.

Marianne: There is also the theme of perception that can be applied to the analysis of this activity. One of the main reasons why I believe that we had this sense of unease and discomfort participating in this deviant behavior is because of the perception that we would be putting forth about ourselves to others. According to Goffman, an individual, when in the presence of others, will have many motives for trying to control the impression that he or she receives in that situation (Goffman 46). A deviant behavior has the potential of leaving a negative impression on the individual participating in said deviant behavior. As it is stated in the class discussion of Symbolic Interactionism, there is a symbolic communication exchange when people interact with one another. Perceptions are created for each other and actions are taken on these perceptions (Sarmiento 2)

How did you feel during this experiment? How does it feel to deviate from the norms? Were you hesitant to do the activity?

Mia: I felt very uneasy because I knew it was a deviant act so I was already singling myself out even before entering the venue. I think that my internal reactions to my deviant act were more severe than others’ reaction to me. In this instance it felt bad for me to deviate from the norm because of what other people may think of us.

Marianne: I was initially hesitant. I don’t like to stand out amongst crowds so this activity and the subsequent reactions were definitely out of my comfort zone. I was extremely embarrassed from the moment I left to go outside. I first stepped outside of my house. The comments from my neighbor and the attendant, although light-hearted, still made me feel uncomfortable. The looks I received from people while in UP Town Center were similar to the sensation of “pin pricks”. They were small and caused no harm but I was left feeling uneasy. However, as the day progressed I found myself loosening up and even caring less about the looks I would receive. I more or less was becoming accustomed to the reactions. It helped that they were small and quick in duration.

Other observations and analysis that you may have on the activity and on deviance in general.

What is considered acceptable in terms of clothing attire will vary depending on the venue and the context. For instance it is completely acceptable to wear a bikini to the beach, however if one wears this to a formal restaurant, it may be considered vulgar. Pajamas are acceptable to wear in the context of sleeping, which is something people normally do at home and by themselves, making pajamas a personal type of clothing. Wearing pajamas in public places can be acceptable in certain contexts such as in a hospital or if the theme of a function requires pajamas. However, in most circumstances, it may give the impression of laziness and a disregard for one’s appearance.

The activity provided an opportunity to observe how even a relatively small change to one aspect of a person’s life, in this case everyday public clothing, can still garner a response from people. It was also interesting to see how a deviance in attire can elicit a range of reactions from various people. In the Shell Select Gas Station there were little reactions to someone wearing pajamas. However, in UP Town the sight of someone in pajamas resulted in not only numerous looks but even whispered comments with peers.

DOCUMENTATION