Read “Eating Christmas in the Kalahari” found in Appendix A, at the back of the Dobe Ju’/honasi ethnography by Richard Lee. This piece describes the attempt by Richard Lee to gift an ox at Christmas to the Dobe Ju as a way to thank them for allowing him to

conduct his research. In this case, Lee found that the cultural rules behind gift giving did not conform to the notion of an ‘American gift’ because gift giving typically involves the principle of reciprocity. Also, the Ju are very aware that gifts can be used to embarrass rivals or to foster feelings of indebtedness (see Cronk article), especially when the gift exchange involves social groups (or nations) rather than individuals.

Questions to be addressed in your paper:

1. Why do the Ju react the way they do to Lee’s offer of buying and slaughtering an ox for them to celebrate Christmas in the Kalahari? Why was Lee’s gift not viewed as part of their Hxaro exchange system? How does the Ju understanding of reciprocity differ in Hxaro exchanges as compared to Lee’s gift of an ox?

2. Explain what Mary Douglas means in the following quote: “A gift that does nothing to enhance [or alter] social relations is a contradiction” (Douglas, 2000). Why is it a contradiction? Discuss why you agree or disagree with her statement, and how you think it relates to gift giving practices in the United States. Specifically, consider why Americans tend to devalue a gift that has ‘strings attached’ whereas other cultures do not?

3. Think about a gift exchange in your own life that DID NOT occur on a specified holiday (birthday, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, etc.), and which represents an example of one of the following types of gift giving strategies: Hxaro, Swapping, Kula, or Potlatch (it must represent one of these types). First, analyze your exchange and make a clear case to me as to why it is an example of a particular strategy. Second, discuss the ‘strings’ in your gift exchange by answering the following questions: What was the relationship between the giver and receiver? Had previous gifts been given? What prompted this exchange? What was given/received? Was price a concern? Was the gift considered ‘appropriate’ – or did some aspect of it feel inappropriate and cause tension between the giver/receiver? Was this exchange in response to a previous exchange (i.e., established reciprocity)? How did the exchange alter or enhance the relationship between the giver and receiver? Were there feelings of indebtedness that were created or alleviated by the exchange?

4. Conclude your paper by considering how the practice of gift exchange is related to kinship systems, and why it therefore may be foundational to the development of human society and culture, stretching all the way back to early modern humans in the Paleolithic.