Symbolic Interactionism Theory and the Ground of Routine Activities: Ethnomethodology as Portrayed by Harold Garfinkel and Herbert Blumer

Sociology of Everyday Life
Sociology is considered as the study of human social life in the context of individuals, groups, and societies. In fostering the various aspects of sociology, sociologists came up with various theories that expound of human relationships in their day-to-day activities. This essay aims at identifying the relationship existing between the symbolic interactionism theory and the ground of routine activities, ethnomethodology as portrayed by Harold Garfinkel and Herbert Blumer.
Harold confers on ethnomethodology as a way through which people make sense and find ways in which to act in their daily routine activities. He considers the various settings, which dictate stable features of daily activities. First, he considers that there has to exist common familiar variables such as familiar household and suggested that these variable remain insignificant in his study. From these variables, a set of considerations are unexamined: seen but unnoticed (Garfinkel, 1968, p. 276). To understand these standardized and unstandardized variables, there has to be a stranger who notices the daily activities of a certain group, which common members do not notice.
Symbolic interactionism deliberates to understand the human conduct in a wider social concept of groups interactionism. Under symbolic interactionism, Herbert seeks to identify how human group life and social action coexist in society. He recognizes four main central conceptions about symbolic interactionism crucial to understanding his propositions. People, individually or collectively, are prepared to act based on meanings of objects comprising their world (Blumer, 1969, p. 67). The interactions of persons usually occur in processes where they make indications to one...

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... human interactions since humans try to interpret each other’s actions instead of reacting towards them as ethnomethodology suggests.
In the broader sociological concept, it is important to integrate all the concepts designed to define human interactions. In a broader picture, all sociological theories aim at defining a certain concept important to society. Henceforth, the concept of studying human actions and interactions should be done in the natural course of life. It is a general fact that human interactions are categorized into small groups in society some of which remain unrealized even to members of the group.

References
Blumer, H. (1969). Symbolic Interactionism;Perspective and Method. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.

Garfinkel, H. (1968). Ethnomethodological Studies of Work. London: Routledge & K. Paul.