Sociological view on social interaction

Acquaintance: [waving cheerily] How are you?
Student: How am I in regard to what? My health, my finance, my schoolwork, my peace of mind, my...?
Acquaintance: [red in the face and suddenly out of control] Look! I was just trying to be polite. Frankly, I don't give a damn how you are.

"As this example shows, social interaction requires tacit agreement between both the actors about what is normal and expected. Without shared norms and understandings, no sustained interaction can occur. People are likely to get upset and end an interaction when one violates the assumptions underlying the stability and meaning of daily life."