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reciprocity

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Reciprocity

Reciprocity, the obligation of the gift, seems so simple and yet upon closer inspection, becomes baffling. Reciprocity according to Mauss is not the same as the conventional meaning of the word. For Mauss, reciprocity is an obligation one has to society as well as one's partner. It isn't “tit for tat.”

But then that's where things get interesting. Consider the emotions reciprocity evokes. It sounds like a word for fairness. And yet, there's this poem:

Tit for tat.
Butter for fat.
If you kick my dog,
I'll kick your cat.

Ouch!

And then there's the old saying: “If you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours.” Sounds a bit shady.

Also, did you know that <anthro>the Inuit people of Greenland have a saying… “Gifts make slaves like whips make dogs.”</anthro>

So, although Mauss tries to link the act of gift giving and reciprocity to a sense of moral unity and solidarity with one's community, often people do not experience reciprocity in this way. They see reciprocity as a quid pro quo, or “If you do something for me, I'll do something for you.” People see that it is in their own self-interest to enter into a reciprocal partnership. Or, they may think that their self-interest is harmed by reciprocity. They are afraid of the gift. This remains a question for anthropologists today. Reciprocity is an obligation, but does that mean that people embrace their obligation to reciprocate as a good thing?

For our purposes, it is important to remember that Mauss's concept of reciprocity is not just tit-for-tat or quid pro quo. He wanted to argue that we needed to look at it from the perspective of the social whole. We need a sociocentric, not egocentric, perspective on the question. Remember, he is Durkheim's nephew and best student. He drank deeply from the cup of functionalist sociological explanation. So reciprocity is a norm of society, an obligation, and people find that their self-interest and the altruistic motives are both reflected in the gift.

reciprocity.1405046917.txt.gz · Last modified: 2014/07/10 19:48 by Ryan Schram (admin)