Configuration of a public experience: the case of fairs at the Brazil-Bolivia border

Abstract

Having the contemporary sociology of public problems as our basis, we present a reflection on the importance of public experience in cities. This ambition led us to consider the public as the center of political analysis and modality of experience, through which we study, empirically, controversies and conflicts around the functioning of free markets in Corumbá, on the Brazil-Bolivia border. Rescuing the pragmatic contributions, it was possible to understand the process of association, discussion, and procrastination of the problem. In this case, the experience of not only crossing borders, but also of living on the borders, where controversies make the actors operate in different collective actions, each one justifying its problematization.