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Holland, to observe certain places, three to be exact, to check out the behavior of different people in different settings. I also observed how people reacted to those who acted outside of the social norm. In the following paragraphs, I will describe my observations, and decide on a theoretical analysis, as well as to why I feel the theoretical analysis fits my place of observation. Underground Atlanta My first place of observation was at The underground. Before go in depth with my observations, I would like to inform you on the history of Underground Atlanta.
In 1836, a rail line was created to connect the farming nd cotton states to markets from Atlanta to Chattanooga (http:// www. underground-atlanta. com/about-us/history-of-underground. html). After the Civil War in 1 866, the only thing that was left was ashes and burned down homes. During the 1920’s, concrete viaducts were created to regulate the flow of traffic. Eventually, the lower level was utilized by merchants. underground Atlanta was also a part of the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960’s. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led many non-violent marches across the bridge fighting for equal opportunity for blacks.
He also fought for the esegregation of schools, restaurants, as well as the right to sit wherever we wanted to on buses. When Dr. King was assassinated in 1968, the funeral procession from his church to his burial site crossed over the bridge through The Underground. It was not until thirty-three years later that underground Atlanta was restored. And in 1980, the MARTA train station was created. Now, the Underground currently serves as a hangout spot for families, as a place for shopping, dining, and dancing at great night clubs.
During my observation, I sat at a table next to the Hagen Daz ice cream shop, which sits n front of the Marta train station. sat in the same spot twice for a little over three hours. It seems as if every other person were acquainted with the other, meaning they know each other. Those who were not familiar faces along the strip were given faces Of curiosity. It was quite obvious to tell the difference between those who were regulars and those visiting. The visitors did not really know their way around, and showed expressions frustration and uncertainty on their faces.
The visitors were almost always the targets of the street vendors’ attempts to make sales. The street vendors sold fruits, snacks, body oils, soaps, books, music, and incense. There was one out-of- towner that purchased one item from each vendor she passed. There was very little diversity at The Underground. I spotted a few Caucasian and Asian people. The majority was African-American people; the only Asians were those who either owned a nail salon, beauty supply store, or a restaurant that sells Chinese food. As I was writing down my observations, I heard this beautiful masculine voice singing.
As I looked up, it was a short middle-aged man with his shades on, and dressed casually. He was singing old gospel songs as people dropped dollars and coins in his hat. He would stop to drink from his bottle of water and sing another song. It amazed me to hear him sing for a whole three hours. I was astonished because he knew so many gospel songs and he never sang the same song twice. In the state of Georgia, this was the first time in my life that I had seen homeless people being treated like human beings. In other cities, have seen them treated like animals. ave even seen stories on the news about the homeless being targeted in hate crimes. During the three hours of bservation, people called them by their names, and shook their hands. Those passing through would also hold conversations with them or make a donation; whether it was money, food, or clothing that homeless man or woman never left empty handed. Visiting shoppers who were unfamiliar with the environment appeared to be uneasy and uncomfortable. I am assuming that it was due to the loud music and the fast movement of other fellow shoppers.
Another thing that could have possibly made the visiting customers uncomfortable was the way street vendors competed with each other trying to bargain with one another by pproaching people trying to hand them things, sample perfumes, make a sale, and even put jewelry around their wrists; I do not feel the vendors were trying to harm anyone in any way, they were just trying to gain another client. And on the other hand, when dealing with newcomers in the area, you should be mindful of how you approach them if you are trying to sell products.
In my opinion, the street vendors were evading their personal space, which caused the shoppers to feel uncomfortable and feel threatened. Another reason why visitors were uncomfortable was because panhandlers or homeless eople were following them and begging for money and food. A few of them dug in the trash can in front of me. They would pull out carry out restaurant boxes and half empty Styrofoam cups, and do the best with what they had. In a way it turned my stomach and saddened me to see the homeless digging in trash cans.
It sickened me because they are not aware of how old the food is or the germs the previous person that ate out Of that box is carrying. They are risking being sick to kill their hunger pangs. And I was saddened at the same time because I had no money or food to give. I was also saddened by he life they have to live, whether it was by choice or involuntarily, no one should have to go through such hardship. Foots, who is a homeless guy that talk to and give food to all the time stopped to talk to me.
He asked what I was doing, and began to explain to him that was doing a research paper on public space and was sitting on the bench to observe the behavior of people who may be shopping, passing through, on their way home, or on their way to work. He then went on to tell me that what I was doing was constructive and positive compared to what he saw everyday from young adults my age. I went on to tell him I appreciated the motivation and acknowledgement. I then went on to ask him how he became homeless.
He told me he used to be a business man, owning his own construction business; he was happily married with children, and had a beautiful home, and worries free. He was informed by one of his close friends, Flex how drug dealing was becoming a booming business. He began to dabble in the drug trafficking, and made good money. The more money he made, the more problems followed him. After a while, he began to sample his products more than he was selling and is wife had had enough. She left him and he eventually became strung out so bad that no one wanted anything to do with him; everyone he loved, he lost.
It brought tears to my eyes because I knew that it still bothered him. I could not fathom the thought of being in a cruel world with no one to be there for you and love you back. After we conversed, had a greater respect for him because it takes a lot for someone to admit their shortcomings and admit that they are at fault, whether it is partially or completely. During further observation, began to realize that there was some street etiquette, to certain degree. A few men opened the doors for women, but only if they found them to be attractive and wanted their phone number.
A young man tried catching the attention of a young woman he found to be attractive. unfortunately, the feeling was not mutual; he could not handle her rejecting him and called her out her name. thought to myself, “has the younger generation come to this? Has it come to them being ignorant (not knowing or caring), disrespectful to women, the elderly, and themselves? ” It is easy for one to say their parents did not raise them right or blame the parents. Bur hat if the parents have raised the children to the best of their ability, but as the child got up in age he or she rebelled?
During the process of asking myself that question, I heard what sounded like an altercation. Two women were having an altercation over a man who they both claimed as their own. He did not try stopping the argument, he seemed to get kick out of them arguing over who was his woman. The arguing turned to them finger- pointing in each other’s faces, then to fighting. As they began to fight, no one else tried to stop the fight. Some people stood and watched in shock as the wo women came to blows. Others looked and passed by as if fights were a normal thing and happened everyday along the strip.
I was a little uneasy myself and wanted to break up the fight. But had to remember my purpose of being there and was supposed to be observing the behavior in the public space of The Underground and not to be a part of it. had a hard time sitting back and watching the two women make a fool of themselves and not intervene but I was able to hold it together. By the time they both got up from rolling on the floor with one another, the “boyfriend” was nowhere to be found. I was laughing and grabbing my stomach because both of their hair pieces were on the ground and that they had made a fool out of themselves.
And I knew that they had to be embarrassed for making a fool out of themselves in front of hundreds of people. It turned out that the guy used both of them; and he was not attractive at all which made me scratch my head to why they were fighting over him. He must have had a hell of a personality. Theoretical Analysis Based on the observations made at The Underground, believe that it can be viewed as a site for facilitator of civil order because it is a foundation of social etwork. People develop social bonds in this type of environment and it gives them a feel of belonging within that social group or setting.
Being around people that you have bonded with gives you a sense of security. I also feel that this public space is a stage for art, theatre, and performance. This is my theoretical analysis because I feel that The Underground is somewhat of a stage. You see people dressed as if they are competing with the person next to them, fashionably speaking. There were many people who looked ready to rip the runway; consider fashion to be a form of art. The middle-aged man inging in front of the train station is performance. He was performing to the pedestrians along the strip, showing his talent.
And the pedestrians were showing their appreciation for his voice by giving whatever spare change they had. And for comical purposes, The underground can be a theatre. This theoretical analysis was drawn by me because I felt like I was in the middle of a IJFC wrestling match after witnessing two women across from me fight over a man who was not a sight for sore eyes. I felt ashamed after seeing the women fight. felt that they were disrespecting themselves and making all omen look bad. felt this way because they did not handle the situation with class and respect for themselves and others who were in the vicinity.
The whole situation could have been handled differently; I also think that the fight was childish and pointless because after everything transpired, it turned out that he did not want to be with either one of them. Score’s Bar and Grill My second public space Of observation was a bar and by the name Of Score’s, which is also located at the underground. Score’s Bar and Grill is a sports bar, dance club, and they have special events on certain days of the week. It is located on the lower level of The Underground next to what is now the MARTA rail line.
It is a relaxed place and nice restaurant, but at night it turns into a karaoke bar and dance floor at night. The people at Score’s are friendly, approachable, and respectful. Angelique and l, who is a former teammate of mine, decided to go for a few drinks. We ordered our drinks and sat at the bar, checking the scenery. It was a much older crowd; there were a few people our age, but the majority was age thirty to forty-four. As I checked out the crowd, on the exception of the younger people, I realized hat everyone was missing at least one tooth in the older age group.
It was like they were apart of some organization where the requirement was that you had to have one or more teeth missing. Based on the attire that most of the party-goers had on, there was no dress code. I spotted a young man on the dance floor breaking a sweat in his Church’s Chicken uniform; I hope he washed it before going back to work the following day. A guy sitting next to us at the bar began to annoy me thoroughly. First, he assumed that Angelique and I were lovers. After explaining to him that we were just eammates, he then Went on to tell Angelique how she was too pretty to be a lesbian and how beautiful we were.
After making a few more offensive comments, he told me he was Jewish and he had just been released from prison after ten years. tried ignoring him but he was like a gnat that would not get out of your face. Afterwards, he begged for me to dance with him, I said no over one hundred times, and he still could not understand. Then he began hassling Angelique and I about buying him another drink; if I’m not mistaken, the man is supposed to buy the drink for the woman. And once gain, we told him no over and over. I was so happy to see another walk in the bar because he went over to harass her and eventually left us alone.
As Angelique and I were laughing, enjoying our drinks, and music, there was a loud bang. As I looked over to my right to see where the noise came from, I saw a woman being helped up from the floor; she had had way too much to drink that night. As she was being helped to her feet, we noticed that her wig was twisted in the opposite direction. It was so hard for us to hold our composure; it eventually came out with much effort of trying to hold it in. To y surprise, no fight broke out while Angelique and I were there at the bar; guess you could say that the people there were “happy drunks”.
I would consider Score’s to be a third place. Score’s is a third place because it is a lively place where you can have a good time. After a long day at the office, Score’s is a nice place to drop in, catch up on your favorite sports teams, relax, and throw back a beer or two. And am more than sure that you Will run into a friend or two. Scor???s is also capable of being defined as a stage for art, theatre, and performance as well. It is art, theatre, and performance on he basis of everyone in the bar having a sense Of creativity with the attire they wore that night.
The dancing was a form of art and performance as well because everyone was showing off their latest dance moves. The DJ playing different records was a form of art because it showed his creativity on the turntables. The bartenders hair was a form of art as well based on her hair color, which was Kool-Aid red, the way it was cut, and the different designs that were placed in her hair. She was performing as well because she mixed the drinks for everyone; the better she mixed the drink for a customer performance), the bigger tip she would receive.
Cumberland Mall My last place of observation was Cumberland Mall, which is located in Cobb County. Instead of the usual casual outfit I would wear at the mall, I decided to put on my Sunday best. In comparison to the other two public spaces I observed, it seemed that there was an invisible code of conduct. Everyone acted civilized and behaved within the social norm like there was a sign on the door of how to act. There was a mixed crowd of people from all ages, ethnic backgrounds, and they all had different tastes in style. aw guys dressed like ollege students with the collar shirts and hushpuppies, young ladies dressed in party attire, pajamas, etc. In my opinion, coming to the mall in pajamas, knowing that everyone will see what you have on was a little much. Some people had a hand full Of bags, and One word came to mind, shopping spree. And there were other people with a small bag in there hand; I took that as they were coming to get something to go with the outfit that they had previously purchased, whether it was an accessory, shoes, or a tank top.
I could hear children in the background crying because they wanted a cookie, ut their mom or dad would not buy it. I could also hear people behind me talking about every person that walked by and why they were dressed the way they were. But the truth of the matter was that they looked worse than the people they were criticizing. I walked into the jewelry store pretending to show interest in the rings that were displayed before me, and they met me at the door with greetings. There was a couple in there before me who was not as dressy as I was, and they did not get much service.
Seeing this, I came to the conclusion that those who come in dressed more professional were reated as top priority in comparison to the people that dress in street clothes. After waiting for ten minutes for them to be acknowledged, they left the store. I visited another store in the mall, which was a beauty supply store run by an Asian couple; the same thing happened, but this time they followed the people dressed in street clothes around the entire store, thinking that they were about to steal something.
But little did they know that because was dressed professionally did not mean that was incapable of being a thief, robber, or burglar. Theoretical Analysis My belief is that Cumberland Mall was a facilitator of civil order, a place of power and resistance, a third place, as well as art, theatre, and performance. It was a facilitator of civil order because people felt safe and secure with their surroundings, as well as the social group they were interacting with. Everyone in the mall knew to act within the social norm, meaning they knew how to act and how not to act in public; there was like and invisible code of conduct, so to speak.
The mall is a place of power and resistance because some of the stores are considered to be public spaces, but in all actuality it is private store. People are practically judged by their attire and from there the store owner or clerk decides whether they want to assist or acknowledge the customer, which is blatant discrimination; you are judged by the way you dress, and talk. Cumberland Mall is a third place due to the fact that this is where teenagers, as well as adults meet up with friends and family after a full day of work or class.
The mall is where they come to window shop, enjoy a good meal, and wind down for the remainder of the day. And lastly I consider the mall to be a place of art, performance and theatre. The attire and art ieces found throughout the mall are forms of art; the way the people dress and wear their hair is a form of art as well. It is also a place of performance and theatre because there is a movie theatre inside the mall and there are choirs that come to perform or musicians that come to play their music.
Conclusion In closing, believe that public space is what you make it. I enjoyed the different scenes that I observed. It was a new and different experience; it felt good to sit and watch others pass by, viewing their behavior and observing how they communicate with others both consciously and unconsciously. There were times where got funny looks from people passing by because I had been sitting there for so long, writing in my notepad; there were a few people who even stopped by and asked why I was sitting there and what I was writing in my notebook.
I am amazed at the many pages of notes that I took on each public space, never realized that so much could go on in such a small amount of time. enjoyed observing the public spaces because on all three days went to observe, it was beautiful and sunny. I would recommend that anyone who wants to know what goes on around them or in their ommunity to take the time out and observe what goes on around you. Many times, because we are in the crowd, moving from place to place, we don’t notice the little things.