Many of us live in cities with underground transport systems: Singapore’s MRT, London’s Tube system, New York’s Subway, Boston’s T. There is an unwritten rule on the train: do not talk to strangers unless there is an emergency.
The guy who made the video below broke that taboo, with amazing results. Thanks to Roger Ebert, a great blogger, for drawing it to my attention.
Is there such an unwritten rule? I thought it’s just common that we don’t talk to strangers, but we always can?
“Just common” is what is meant by an “unwritten rule”. The only times the taboo is broken would be when (1) there is an emergency such as smoke or a crash, or (2) there is someone dangerous in the carriage. If something funny happens, such as a humourous announcement from the driver, you are allowed to look at your fellow riders and smile or laugh.
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Alright. But unwritten rule sounds rigid?
I’ll say, not used to, or habit, cultural or societal norms?
Anway, great that e guy took e first step! Lol
An unwritten rule IS pretty rigid. People often flirt with each other or cruise each other on public transport but it’s often unspoken. When one then gets off the train, the other is free to join him to continue the cruising. But you would rarely speak to a stranger in that situation.
Isaac Asimov, in some of his Robot books, spoke of cities of the future where people would have flats with no bathroom in them as there would not be any room for such, the population was so high. So there were communal bathrooms for a section of the block of flats. In the men’s bathrooms, speaking was taboo; even making a noise was frowned upon. In the women’s bathrooms, there was a constant chatter. It’s his observation of men’s behaviour in public toilets. You might note that even in some videos that are set in public toilets, the men who are having sex with each other rarely speak.