How Gifts Are Exchanged in a Particular Society - Essay Example

Using ethnographic evidence demonstrate how 'gifts' are exchanged in a particular society. What kinds of meanings are ascribed to these gift-giving practices Is it really the 'thought that counts What can an examination of gift-giving tell us about the creation and maintenance of social relationships CULTURE OF EXCHANGING GIFTS Whenever you think of visiting somebody or you are going to attend any party or function the first thing that comes in our mind is "What gift should I buy" So the practice of exchanging gifts is very common in our society in fact not only in our society but through out the world. What actually this gift is It's a transfer or exchange of something voluntarily usually give to express one's love, solidarity, to express gratitude etc on any special occasion i.e. wedding, birthday, Christmas, anniversary, birth, father's day, mother's day etc The basic purpose behind this exchange of little things is to make your loved ones feel special and to make them feel that you care for them. But according to some people they are important in insecure relations. According to Caplow, Theodore. 1982. Christmas gifts and kin networks. Sociological Review, "What the ethnographic literature on gift giving does suggest is that ritual gift giving in any society is a method in dealing with relationships that are important bur insecure"1 Well now the culture has become advanced and as a result the gift exchange is no more a one way process but has taken the form of cycle which involves obligations to give, to receive, and to return. Endorse may exist to induce people to give, disapproval or loss of prestige resulting from a failure to do so. We can call it a moral norm but it varies from country to country for instance in Taiwan gifts like gold pen, imported liquor, gifts related to base ball, perfume, magazine subscription and anything high-tech is appreciated . In western world exchanging gifts in holiday seasons is a custom and if you become fed up of exchanging gifts people will suppose that you are a selfish person. Christmas gifts are other important features of American society. According to Caplow, Theodore, 1982 " Relationships with kin being more valued then other affiliations, it is not surprising that so much efforts goes into reinforcing them by ritual gift giving"2.. (Christmas gifts and kin networks. Sociological Review) In Japan you have to give a gift to a person in order to show respect, friendship or appreciation and in case you are meeting a person for the very first time it is necessary to exchange gifts. Moreover it is considered a rude behavior to give a gift to an individual in a group and ignore others. Another interesting fact about Japanese gift exchanging culture is that they avoid giving gifts in sets of four as the word "four" in Japanese is "shi," which is also associated with the word for death and pens are considered to be the very appropriate gift for your colleague. In Korea gifts between business associates are considered as the symbol of appreciation and the presenting expensive gift is a custom but don't present an expensive gift if the receiver is not financially strong enough to return the gift of same worth. 4 numbers is considered unlucky in Korea as well. Koreans Give and receive the gifts with both hands. Korean opens the gift in the presence of the one who presented them the gift. Chinese people often avoid exchanging expensive gifts. They avoid giving gifts in odd number as they relate it to loneliness and separation. Umbrellas and Clocks are also not considered as good gifts in Chinese civilization. Taiwan had even more interesting custom that is they avoid giving gifts with a label "made in Taiwan". They also avoid giving clocks, sweat cakes, umbrellas, scissors, mirrors, fans and hand towels as well. Business gifts are also very popular in Taiwan's culture. Moreover it is customary to reciprocate a gift with one of similar value. Numbers also play an important role in selecting gifts for example: in china 8 and 6 are considered as lucky numbers whereas for Chinese 4 is unlucky number similarly 13 is considered as unlucky number in West. Gifts were also exchanged in pre Christian especially at a winter celebration from Roman Saturnalia. They use to exchange good luck gifts in form of Stenae (Lucky fruits). Gift exchanging in Business There are some countries where gifts are not much appreciated in business matters for instance in Malaysia and Paraguay giving gifts in business is considered as bribe. In Malaysia especially you can't give a gift to person whom you don't know or with whom you have not established enough relationship. Similarly in Singapore none of the government employee is allowed to except any sort of gift where as in US a government employee can only accept a gift worth $25. The only thing that makes a difference between bribe and gift is the heart with sincere feelings for receiver and a mind with out material benefits. The rule is same in the business and other departments of life as well. Tradition of excepting gifts also vary from country to country for example in Singapore the person who is receiving gift can graciously refuse the gift three times but in places like Chili gifts are immediately accepted and opened as well. There are some countries where gifts are not at all appreciated in business and some where they are expected in first meeting for instance in Taiwan gifts are expected in first meeting but in countries like Africa they are not expected or are not exchanged frequently.Let us have a look at countries which expect or do not expect gifts in meetings or work place. Countries where gifts are not expected or are less frequent exchanged Countries were gifts are not expected in the first meeting but would be in subsequent visits Countries where gifts re expected in business meetings Africa Australia Europe ( England, France, Hungary, Italy) Latin America (Uruguay) Scandinavia Denmark Middle East (Pakistan, Saudi Arabia) United States EUROPE Portugal, Spain LATIN AMERICA ( Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama) PERU, VENEZUELA PACIFIC RIM ( Malaysia, Singapore Scandinavia - Finland, Norway) EUROPE (Czech Republic, Poland, Russia, Ukraine) LATIN AMERICA (Bolivia, Columbia, Costa Rica) PACIFIC RIM (China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand) Gift exchanging in Business Following are the special occasions when gifts are appreciated in different countries. Christmas Eve (Noel), New Year's Eve. Right through most of France, Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas are not very recognizable figures. FRANCE The British, including the Royal Family, exchange gifts on Christmas Morning. Boxing Day - the first weekend after Christmas - is a permissible holiday that origins in the custom of giving boxes of Christmas gifts to the servants, mailman, and others, on the next day of the family Christmas. GREAT BRITAIN Ochugen, It is sometimes called Christmas in July and has originated as a way to console families who lost family in the first half of the year. Oseibo is the most important Japanese gift-giving holiday which takes place during December, not on a specific day of the month. JAPAN New Year, January 1 ,Labor Day, May1, Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, October 1-2 ,Spring and autumn Lunar (Moon) festivals. CHINA Christmas, Good Friday, birthdays, Easter Monday, Mother's Day and Labor Day.. GERMANY New Year's, Epiphany, Valentine's Day, Mother' Day, Father's Day, Carnival, Christmas and Name Day. ITALY Christmas, Easter, Mother's Day, weddings, Father's Day and birthdays are celebrated in Scandinavia. Weddings are also significant occasions. SCANDENAVIA Christmas and Easter, and both are predominately holy, religious holidays. Chileans celebrate birthdays, Christmas, and weddings. LATIN AMERICA Importance of gifts in our social life Gifts play very important role in our social life especially in establishing relationships and making our loved ones feel that they are important and we care for them. But some times these gifts are use for negative means for instance if you give an expensive gift to your senior employee at the time of recession or for any material benefit it will be considered as bribery and not a gift and you will be called selfish. On the contrary if you exchange a gift with your senior employee on any special occasion, without considering any material benefit then its expression of respect. Gifts create a good feeling in the heart and mind of receiver if you had given him the specific gift with the feeling of love affection and the soul reason behind your action is to make the receiver feel that you love, respect or care for him/her. As human being has become civilized the tradition of exchanging gifts has also become a common practice and the popularity of this tradition is increasing day by day. The styles of giving a gift may change but basic motive remained same that is to show your love and affection for somebody special. Financial situations of the country also effects people choice of purchasing gifts as Patico, Jennifer. 2002. Chocolate and Cognac: Gifts and the Recognition of Social Worlds in Post-Soviet Russia. Ethnos, 67(3): says, "In the midst of financial crises in 1998-1999 economic factors influenced not only individual's gift choices but also conventional norms. Teacher's students were not giving so many flowers any more this year,Liza told me because they were expensive and pleasant but quickly gone"3 A gift becomes more precious if you visit a person and had some misunderstanding going on with a relationship with him and after having positive arguments with him. It will create a good feeling in heart and mind of the receiver that he had judged you wrong and that you don't have any regret in your heart and mind for the receiver. The receiver will appreciate your act and will talk about your humble ness in the friends gathering resulting people believing that you are very friendly and caring person. Thus your social image will become much good and liable. Giving gifts is not essential but is good to adapt this habit in order to maintain your social relation ships. Small gifts create great delight in receiver's heart for instance your mother will feel good if you will give a gift to her on mothers day, your son or daughter will feel happy when you will bring a gift for him or her on birthday, Christmas or any other special occasion. If you are presenting gifts with a sincere heart it will make you loved by every one. Man is a social animal and there fore have to move in society and attend parties, functions and other social gatherings where gift exchanging some time become essential in order to maintain decent behavior in society. A gift doesn't mean to buy an expensive thing a flower bouquet or anything decent in your budget is enough. Gift exchanging traditions like the one in Taiwan is proved to be a burden despite of a pleasant feeling for the receiver where receiver despite of become happy starts thinking how he will return the gift of the same or more worth. Such traditions should not be followed as it creates more problems for receiver or much better practice is to avoid giving expensive gifts so that the receiver could feel delightful and can enjoy the pleasure of receiving gifts. There was a time when givers use to select gifts that are needs of receiver. According to Patico, Jennifer. 2002. Chocolate and Cognac: Gifts and the Recognition of Social Worlds in Post-Soviet Russia. Ethnos, 67(3),"instead these gifts were discussed as things that everyone 'needed' (and sometime alternatively that no one 'needed'- decorative tea cups and trinkets), which would not prove conspicuously superfluous or inappropriately chosen4 The concept of lucky, unlucky numbers and symbols is not that much strong but we can't deny the importance of exchanging gifts or gift culture. Now we are so habitual of this culture that we feel awkward to go empty handed to somebody's home even in normal days. References Caplow, Theodore. 1982. Christmas gifts and kin networks. Sociological Review 47(3): pg 392 Patico, Jennifer. 2002. Chocolate and Cognac: Gifts and the Recognition of Social Worlds in Post-Soviet Russia. Ethnos, 67(3): Asmussen, Vibeke. 2004. Constructing Gender and Local Morality: Exchange Practices in a Javanese Village. Indonesia and the Malay World, 32(94):315-329 Herrmann, Gretchen. 1997. Gift or commodity: what changes hands in the US garage sale. American Ethnologist 24(4): 910-930. Sahlins, M. 1974. Chapter 5: On the Sociology of Primitive Exchange. Stone-Age Economics. London: Tavistock: 185-275 Hurd.D .Mitchells, The Importance of Gifts and Inheritances Among the Affluent The RAND Corporation; SUNY at Stony Brook University, College of Arts and Science, Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) Kammerer and Nicola Tannenbaum, Cornelia Ann (1996). MERIT AND BLESSING: In Mainland Southeast Asian Comparative Perspective.. New Haven (Connecticut): Yale University.: Southeast Asia Studies (Monograph 45). Cheal, David: "The Gift Economy" (1998). Routledge, ISBN Godbout, Jacques: "The world of gift" (1998). McGill-Queen's University Press, Read More