legalization of norms
marriage
recently marriage has been based on love and security of emotional physical and mental well being
however in the olden days (before 20 years ago) marriage was about gaining power and property
public importance
recognition reduces uncertainty. people know where they stand because the status is recorded and enforced in the same way for many cases
many internalize the status as part of an identity they feel legitimate and seen by the wider community
exclusion has the opposite effect when a partnership is not recognized people face doubt at the door to care to inherentance and to decision making that produces stress and secrecy
the term bastard was created in past legal orders is a child born outside marriage was formally classified as illigitimate
that label changed property rights and social standing it was a legal signal with wide reach
as rules about parentage changed the formal label lost force that reduced the lagal path for stigma and changed how people understood family identity
next of kin
a clear procedure replaces private negotiation at the bedside
an authorized interpreter reads the record and decides who may consent
enforcement becomes predictable across cases staff does not pick a side in a family dispute they follow the recorded rule
effect of legal form on practice
written rules can standardize behavior
they can also displace local meanings and routines
people may comply from conviction or the fear of sanction
How to detect norms
look for regular patterns in behavior
listen for language of ought and must
watch reactions to a breach such as a complaint or repair
see how rules connect and support one another
note which rules take priority when they conflict
track who interprets the rules and who can grant an exception
Feedback
legal rules reshape meaning in life
when a norm is legalized it draws a clear line about what is acceptable and what is not
the new rule creates property spaces and roles people then learn who may act who must decide and who must stop
the record the office and the authorized interpretor decides…
practice can in turn press for revisions of rules
daily use exposses gaps and burdens, complaints records and decisions show patterns that do not fit the purpose of the rule
Deviation is taken as a threat nowdays
law and lifeworld
move together over time
meanings from the lifeworld are translated into system rules
once in place the rules travel across workplaces families markets and public offices and they reshape everyday expectations