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The Flow of Gifts: Reciprocity and Social Networks in a Chinese Village
Gift-giving is a classic topic in anthropology, where on-going debates involve the principle of reciprocity, the spirit of the gift, and the relationship between gifts and commodities. But the topic has been surprisingly little studied in the Chinese context except for the form of instrumental exchange known as networking or guanxi.
278 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 27, 2024
一本恰如其分的“属于90年代的中国人类学研究”，虽然我能用上的不多，不过阎云翔老师对下岬村各种“人情关系”、“人情往来”和“关系”的细致白描，以及他所展现的“如何细腻地和洋人的理论对话”，都足以撑起这本书在Google Scholar的千次被引。
本书在理论关照上很适合和walder的那本新传统主义，或是oi的农村中的恩庇关系研究，结合起来看。阎云翔把oi以及walder的理论变成了自己研究中的“关系”种类的一种，也就是“送礼”——理性地运作关系来获利。“随礼”和“送礼”两个词在中国是被用于两个完全不同的语境的，“随礼”可能更偏亲戚朋友这种熟人，而“送礼”则与和权力相联的利益交换有关。
同时，在非中国语境中，送礼往往会让送礼者获得相对于收礼者的权力，或是赠送这个行为本身会缩小社会的两极差距。但通过阎的检视，这一点无法在中国社会主义的语境下实现，人们给村干部送礼，往往再生产出了干部与普通村民/社员间的权力区隔和等级，并且清晰地显示出村干部对普通村民/社员权力支配。
最后阎云翔援引萧凤霞关于“recycling tradition”的研究可以和walder的新传统主义对比。
本书在理论关照上很适合和walder的那本新传统主义，或是oi的农村中的恩庇关系研究，结合起来看。阎云翔把oi以及walder的理论变成了自己研究中的“关系”种类的一种，也就是“送礼”——理性地运作关系来获利。“随礼”和“送礼”两个词在中国是被用于两个完全不同的语境的，“随礼”可能更偏亲戚朋友这种熟人，而“送礼”则与和权力相联的利益交换有关。
同时，在非中国语境中，送礼往往会让送礼者获得相对于收礼者的权力，或是赠送这个行为本身会缩小社会的两极差距。但通过阎的检视，这一点无法在中国社会主义的语境下实现，人们给村干部送礼，往往再生产出了干部与普通村民/社员间的权力区隔和等级，并且清晰地显示出村干部对普通村民/社员权力支配。
最后阎云翔援引萧凤霞关于“recycling tradition”的研究可以和walder的新传统主义对比。
January 1, 2022
As I pointed out in my previous review of Face and Favor
Some jeton on the exchange table:
- Gifts (which is the theme of this book)
- Marriage (姻亲) that connects two families (which this book also mentions when observing the village)
Materials in the book:
- Page 75: From the financial record the Wang family, 5-10% are spent on gifts to maintain social relationship. This cost on gifts also change as the Wang couple enter different age groups, which means that they require different types of support from their social networks.
- Page 103: A list of gift values Xu receives when his second son gets married. There are 22 types of friends and fully demonstrates his success in improving his social connections.
Some key indicators of the quality of a person's social connections:
a) Size of the exchange network
b) Percentage of relatives vs. friends in a)
c) Percentage of intimate friends (who are willing to do big favors)
Different connections of people in the same local neighborhood:
- Personal core, e.g., parents, siblings, very intimate friends
- Reliable zone, e.g., close friends,
- Effective zone, e.g., good acquaintances.
Some jeton on the exchange table:
- Gifts (which is the theme of this book)
- Marriage (姻亲) that connects two families (which this book also mentions when observing the village)
Materials in the book:
- Page 75: From the financial record the Wang family, 5-10% are spent on gifts to maintain social relationship. This cost on gifts also change as the Wang couple enter different age groups, which means that they require different types of support from their social networks.
- Page 103: A list of gift values Xu receives when his second son gets married. There are 22 types of friends and fully demonstrates his success in improving his social connections.
Some key indicators of the quality of a person's social connections:
a) Size of the exchange network
b) Percentage of relatives vs. friends in a)
c) Percentage of intimate friends (who are willing to do big favors)
Different connections of people in the same local neighborhood:
- Personal core, e.g., parents, siblings, very intimate friends
- Reliable zone, e.g., close friends,
- Effective zone, e.g., good acquaintances.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews