Distribution &Exchange
&Consumption (164-186)
By: Kiranpreet Bhangu, Nidhi Shelat, Nujhat Ahmed, Arany
Poobalasingam
General Overview
• Exchange:
• mostly in cultures without money as a means of buying and selling products or goods
• Rewards for labor is usually direct (family eats what it harvests/hunts/etc.)
• Distribution of goods and products
• Reciprocity
• Redistribution
• Market exchange
• Motive: fulfill social obligations and gain prestige
• Social customs affect the nature and occasion of exchange
• Sharing of food allows for tribes/bands/families or communities to bind and ensure the subsistence of everyone
Reciprocity (164-173)
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Vocabulary
Reciprocity: “the exchange of goods and services of approximately equal value between two
parties”(p.164)
Generalized Reciprocity: “A mode of exchange in which the value of the gift is not
calculated, nor is the time of repayment specified” (p. 165)
Balanced Reciprocity: “A mode of exchange whereby the giving and the receiving are
specific in terms of the value of the goods and the time of their delivery” (p. 165)
Negative Reciprocity: “A form of exchange whereby the giver tries to get the better of the
exchange” (p. 173)
Silent Trade: “A form of barter with no verbal communication” (p. 174)
Reciprocity
Generalized Reciprocity
• Gift giving also falls into this category
• Generally occurs with close relatives or friends/family
• Deny the fact that these exchanges are economic, and say that they are based
on friendship obligations and relationships
• “homeless use system of generalized reciprocity to ensure the group’s
survival” (p. 165)
Balanced Reciprocity
• Differs from other forms of reciprocity as it is not a long-term process
• Giving + receiving + time involved = more specific
• “Each person has a direct obligation to reciprocate promptly in equal value” (p. 165) to
maintain social relationships
• Giving, receiving, and sharing provides a sense of social safety or assurance.
• One family contributes to another in times of need
• Levelling mechanism: promotes egalitarian distribution of wealth over time
Negative Reciprocity
• giver tries to get better end of the bargain
• people exchanging have opposite interests, who are not related and belong to different
communities
• ultimate form of negative reciprocity: taking the item or thing by force
• general form of negative reciprocity: using “guile” or deception, along with tough
bargaining
Barter and Trade (p. 174-175)
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Barter and trade = form of negative reciprocity
Exchange of scarce items from one group to another for the desired goods
Sharp trading takes place despite, indifference shown when the relative value is calculated
Silent Trade
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Specialized form of barter
No verbal communication
No literal face-to-face communication
Often used when there is a lack of common language-use
Controls situations of distrust hence, keeping relations peaceful
Prevents status-related problems because there is no physical communication
Kula Ring
Kula Ring (p. 175-176)
• Not all trade is motivated by economic considerations
• A classic case of this is the Kula Ring, a Trobriand inter-island trading system whereby
prestige items are ceremoniously exchanged
• Malinowski described the Kula in 1920, but it is still going strong today
• Men periodically set sail in their canoes to exchange shell valuables with their Kula partners, who
live on distant islands
• Valuables are red shell necklaces, which always circulate in trade in a clockwise direction, and
ornate white arm shells, which move in the opposite direction
• These objects rank according to size, colour, how finely polished they are, and their particular histories
Kula Ring (cont’d.)
• No man holds these valuables for very long-at most perhaps ten years
• Holding onto an arm shell or necklace too long risks disrupting the “path” it must follow as it is
passed from one partner to another
• The ceremonial trading of necklaces and arm shells in the Kula ring encourages trade
throughout Melanesia
• Although men on Kula voyages may use the opportunity to trade for other goods, this is not
the reason for such voyages; it is not necessary for the trade to occur
• Trobriand men seek to create history through their Kula exchanges
• By trading such valuables it accumulates histories of their travels and names of those who have possessed
them, men proclaim their individual fame and talent, gaining considerable influence for them-selves in the
process.
Kula Ring (cont’d.)
• Idea is to match size and value of one shell for another, men draw on all their negotiating
skills, material resources, and magical expertise to gain access to strongest partners and most
valuable shells
• Element of negative reciprocity arises when a man diverts shells from their proper “paths” or
entices others to compete for whatever valuables he may have to offer
• Is most elaborate complex of ceremonies, political relationships, economic exchange,
religion, and social integration
• To see it only in its economic aspects is to misunderstand it completely
• Demonstrates once more how inseparable economic matters are from the rest of culture and shows that
economics is not a realm unto itself
Redistribution
Redistribution: a form of exchange in which goods flow into a central place
where they are sorted, counted and reallocated
• Requires two things
• a centralized political system
• economic surplus
• Example: taxes in North America
Redistribution (cont’d.)
• Agent of redistribution (chief, king, etc.) disposes income:
• to maintain a position of superiority through a display of wealth
• to make sure the people who support the agent have a good standard of living
• to make alliances outside the agent’s territory
• The administration of the Inca empire in Peru was very efficient:
• a census of the population and resources were kept
• accounts of income and expenditures were kept
• the centralized authority made sure that redistribution took place:
• ruling class was very rich, but goods redistributed to common people when necessary
Distribution of Wealth
• Levelling mechanism:
• a societal obligation compelling people to redistribute goods so that no one accumulates more wealth
than anyone else
• seen in cultures that focus their time on subsistence activities
• Conspicuous consumption:
• a term used by economist Thorstein Veben to describe the display of wealth for social prestige
• motivates the distribution of wealth
• occurs in in some non-industrial societies as well as industrial societies
• example: the potlatch by the First Nations of North America
Distribution of Wealth (cont’d.)
• Potlatch: community comes together for ceremonial activities, feasts and gift-giving
• Important components of the Potlatch:
• gift-giving
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opportunity for host to gain status through generosity
gift validates the status of guests (value of gift is based on the guest’s rank)
• spiritual ceremonies
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held to announce symbolic property (e.g. getting a new name)
marked critical stages of life (birth, adoption or death)
• participants would be honour-bound
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must hold their own potlatch to gain more prestige
Distribution of Wealth - Potlatch
Distribution of Wealth (cont’d.)
• Purposes of the Potlatch:
• viewed as competitive by some anthropologists (financial hardships on the host)
• a form of communication:
• bonds between people of community
• bonds between member of other communities
• to make sure other communities had adequate resources
• prevented one group from becoming too powerful (levelling mechanism)
Distribution of Wealth (cont’d.)
• The Potlatch during 18th and 19th century:
• revenge potlatches became popular
• wealthy rival chiefs competed with each other
• a result of the economic and social pressures they experienced after the arrival of the Europeans
• banned by Canadian government from 1884 -1951
• considered the ceremonies very wasteful
• wanted to convert Aboriginals to Christianity
• still held by many First Nations coastal groups today
Distribution of Wealth – Potlatch Effects
Aboriginals converted to
Christianity
Market Exchange
• Market Exchange: The buying and selling of goods and services, with prices
set by the powers of supply and demand.
• It has to do with bargaining and negotiating prices when buying these goods
• Some modern market transactions do occur in a specific identifiable location
• Today’s consumers have global access to goods at the “touch of their fingertips”
• Until the 20th century, market exchange typically was carried out in specific places
• However, in peasant societies, some sort of complex division of labor as well as
centralized political organization is mandatory for how the markets appear.
Market Exchange
• Non- Western societies
• Marketplaces in Non- Western societies are full of excitement; they are vibrant places where an
individual’s senses are open to host of colorful lights, sounds, and smells.
• Ex. Flea Markets
• a marketplace is where friendships are made, love affairs begun, and marriages are arranged
• Money: Anything used to make payments for goods or labor as well as to measure their
value; may be special-purpose or multipurpose.
• Informal economy  The production of marketable commodities that for various reasons
escape enumeration, regulation, or any other sort of public monitoring or auditing.
Chinese-Canadian Contributions to the
Canadian Economy (p. 183-184)
• Chinese immigrants are one of the oldest groups to make Canada their
home, coming to Canada some 130 years ago to work on the Canadian
Pacific Railway.
• Many more followed, largest wave in 1990s when Hong Kong Chinese
immigrants to Canada in thousands.
• By 1997, 1.4 million Chinese had made Canada their home.
• They brought with them finances, skills, ad an infectious entrepreneurial
spirit that has revitalized cities like Vancouver and Toronto.
Chinese-Canadian Contributions to the
Canadian Economy (cont’d.)
Chinese-Canadian Contributions to the
Canadian Economy (cont’d.)
• Chinese Canadians have contributed to economy
• Opened up small businesses, creating vibrant Chinese commercial districts
• They send their children to school, and have fuelled the real estate market in large
centres like Vancouver
• Chinese who come to Canada looking for investment entrepreneurial
opportunities have brought large amounts of money with them.
Chinese-Canadian Contributions to the
Canadian Economy (cont’d.)
• Chinese have also contributed to the cultural growth of Canada, including
traditions and celebrations that boost local economies by drawing in visitors
• Introduced ethnic foods, led to a lot of restaurants being opened; helping create a
cosmopolitan atmosphere
• Chinatowns and Chinese shopping centres in large cities offer employment to many
Chinese people, including refugees who may not possess the skills, education or
necessary Canadian qualifications for other employment.
• Led to immigration of other Asians: Japanese, Koreans, and Vietnamese
Consumption
• Consumption: The ingestion of food and the exploitation of available food sources
• Anthropologists have two point of views about consumption
• It is the food and beverages that we consume, and the accompanying rituals and customs
• It is the resources that we use or exploit in our everyday lives
• Serves our basic needs and demands
• From food, shelter and clothing to tools, weapons, vehicles, art and entertainment
• Needs and wants differ from culture to culture, but are all intended to make our lives more
comfortable
Consumption (cont’d.)
• Western overconsumption
• 2003 black out in Eastern North America was at least partially due to the insatiable
demands for power to fuel their technological society
• Small-scale cultures
• Demands are less; their needs are few and easily fulfilled without over exploitation of
the ecosystem
Consumption (cont’d.)
• Consumption Behaviour
• The way people consume food is different
• Idea of utensils of one kind or another was recent invention
• Forks, knives etc.
• Chopsticks
• Hands
• In northern India, they use the fingertips of right hand while southern India uses both hands
• Gestures of appreciation
• Some are considered rude in one culture, while common in the other
• Slurping soup is not a sign of good table manners while in Japan, it shows appreciation for the cook
Consumption (cont’d.)
• Food Taboos
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Because of cultural significance of eating, many taboos have developed regarding what people can and cannot eat
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Hawaiian women were not allowed to touch pork, coconuts, or certain kinds of fish; hence, men cooked the food
• The woman did not eat with the men, and woman’s food was cooked in a different oven than the men’s food
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Muslims and Jews prohibit eating pork, citing religious set of guidelines regarding cleanliness
In Hindu religion, members are not allowed to eat sacred cows
Fasting
• Ukrainians eat only meat-less dishes on Christmas Eve because meat is considered “heavy” while fruits and vegetables “lighten the soul”
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Alcohol
• Some beer parlours (some 40 years ago) had separate entrances for woman and men
• Some beer parlours did not allow woman at all, unless men escorted them