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The social life of a “free” gift
Author(s) -
VENKATESAN SOUMHYA
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
american ethnologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.875
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1548-1425
pISSN - 0094-0496
DOI - 10.1111/j.1548-1425.2010.01291.x
Subject(s) - gift giving , trace (psycholinguistics) , power (physics) , personhood , sociology , sociality , aesthetics , focus (optics) , epistemology , philosophy , law , political science , ecology , linguistics , physics , conflict of interest , quantum mechanics , biology , optics
In this article, I continue the anthropological interest in gifting. I trace the story of a historical failed gift of a South Indian woven mat to Queen Elizabeth II, which, in later accounts was transformed into a successful gift. Identifying this mythical successful gift as a “free gift” (following Jacques Derrida) reveals the power of descriptions in making relations. I argue that the transformation of an unsuccessful gift into a mythical free gift is a product of magnification and supplementation, with concomitant effects on forms of sociality and personhood. I also explore the relationship between gifts and commodities through a focus on what might be termed “inalienable” commodities.