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The Gift: The Form and Reason for Exchange in Archaic Societies
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 301
EAN: 9780393320435
ISBN: 039332043X
Label: W. W. Norton & Company
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 184
Publication Date: 2000-08
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Studio: W. W. Norton & Company
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Editorial Review:
Since its first publication in English in 1954, The Gift, Marcel Mauss's groundbreaking study of the relation between forms of exchange and social structure, has been acclaimed as a classic among anthropology texts.
When first published, The Gift served as nothing less than an onslaught on contemporary political theory. This edition confirms the continuing relevance of Mauss's highly original perspective.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating: - Key work of Anthropology
Marcel Mauss' seminal work of ethnography reviews the practice of the 'potlatch' in a number of archaic societies throughout the world. His analysis and empirical data are far reaching and highly specific, drawing on a number of the finest researchers in the field (such as Malinowski). Mauss' observations present a picture of a highly complex system of reciprocity, a social contract so important and complex that it often results in competition and often warfare between cross-existing tribes. The ... Read More
Rating:  - Gifts and giving
People living in the modern world often have an impression of life being simpler, easier, and less complicated in primitive, tribal societies, especially those without money, credit cards, mortgage bills and other forms of financial exchange. Those who think so should read this book by the French anthropologist Marcel Mauss.
This book examines the practice of exchanging gifts in many non-industrial societies, and looks to see why gifts are given, how they are exchanged, who are involved ... Read More
Rating: - Social Science Man
In his The Gift, Marcel Mauss attempts to explain and understand gifts in primitive societies. Mauss first decides to show that the motives behind giving gifts are more complicated than commonly believed to be. In modern day society, gifts are often thought of as something given out of good will and without the expectance of something in return. Mauss shows us that in many tribal and native cultures, this is not necessarily true. In discussing the Maori, he says, "They had a kind of exchange system, ... Read More
Rating:  - The Gift
Mauss' book is a part sociological, part anthropological study of the practice of gift exchange. First, he explores the various forms this practice takes in distinct ethnographic settings. In each case, one catches a glimpse of what Mauss calls the 'total social fact': the notion that exchanging gifts signifies, beneath its voluntary and individualistic façade, a complex social affair. On the one hand, bonds of solidarity are created/maintained between implicated social groups; on the other, political relations ... Read More
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