Hillary Clinton Meets the Capps (Section 3)

Here is an annotated transcript of the second segment of the greeting exchange:

Transcript, section 3, version a	Ethnographic notes and preliminary analysis
	This is an introduction
	Almost identical repetition of Lois' introduction.
	First pair part of the greeting.
	Second pair part of the greeting
	Coda

The greeting exchange in lines 3-5 conforms to the format described by conversation analysts as typical of greetings: two adjacent turns by two speakers:

Speaker A: {greeting}

Speaker B: {greeting}

This format is called adjacency pair.

However, rather than in a clear sequential relation, the two turns are almost simultaneous, as shown by the sign for overlap (//), although, as shown below, when we listen more carefully, we discover that Hillary starts first. This raises a number of interesting questions that can only be fully answered by becoming familiar with the work on overlaps and examining a number of other greetings and other types of adjacency pairs. Research questions-3

When we listen again to the exchange, we realize that although Todd starts later, Hillary's lengthening of her "hi" makes it possible for the two of them to end at the same time. Immediately after (see the sign "=" for 'latching'), Hillary starts the "how are you", which is also echoed by Todd's "how are you" (double obliques are replaced by brackets in version-b to better mark visually the timing of overlaps).

Transcript, section 3, version a	Ethnographic notes and preliminary analysis
	Almost identical repetition of Lois' introduction.
	First pair part of the greeting.
	Second pair part of the greeting
	First part of "how-are-you" pair
	Second part of "how-are-you" pair

As we listen again and again to the talk, we realize that the greeting exchange between Todd and Hillary is not composed of three turns, as indicated in version-a of the transcript, but of three consecutive, although partially overlapping adjacency pairs. The first adjacency pair is the hi/hi sequence, the second one is the how are you/how are you, which Sacks (1975) called a greeting substitute, and the third adjacency pair is the parallel nice to see you/nice to see you:

Transcript, section 3, version a	Ethnographic notes and preliminary analysis
	Almost identical repetition of Lois' introduction.
	First pair part of the greeting.
	Second pair part of the greeting
	First part of "how-are-you" pair
	Second part of "how-are-you" pair
	First pair part of "nice to see you"
	Second pair part of "nice to see you"

All three adjacency pairs display an identical parallel structure with partial overlap. The second part of the nice to see you pair is followed by a non-reciprocal thanks. This last item of the exchange raises an interesting question: what is Hillary thanking Todd for? In fact, this question is included within a more general question about the entire sequence, namely, how typical is this exchange or to what extent the social identities of the participants and the particular occasion in which they meet can explain what is being said? (See research questions)