Malinowski and the Kula
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In The Trobrianders of the Western Pacific (1922), Malinowski describes how islanders give and receive ornamental armshells and necklaces to and from their exchange partners on other islands.

Although it was neve intended by an individual participant, the individual acts of exchange collectively constitute a Kula ring, with one set of ornaments travelling clockwise and the other anti-clockwise. Although many items leak out of the Kula ring, this structure is generally maintained.

A person who participates in the Kula usually does so so that he can develop a name for himself, or acquire fame. However, there are other consequences of the Kula, other than people acquiring fame. Malinowski picks up on these different aspects - such as sex, witchcraft and war - in his various monographs.

When one participates in the Kula, one must follow the basic rules. One person will exchange a mwal to another person in exchange for a similarly ornate bagi. Exchanging one thing for another completes the transaction. Within this set of rules, there are a variety of strategies that one can employ in order to gain fame and make a name for oneself. One can give more than one has received, or delay a transaction for as long as is possible.

Reciprocity?

In Crime and Custom in Savage Society (1926), Malinowski argues that rather than being a slave to custom the "savage" is as cunning as the "civilised businessman". Although he cares more for prestiege than for material goods, the Trobriander is still "maximising man", which is still relatively close to "economic man". Malinowski argues that an individual will keep to his obligations because "the chain of reciprocal gifts and counter-gifts benefit both sides equally". One will not renege on a particular transaction because, when maximising prestiege and the like, the costs are too great when measured in terms of "self-interest, ambition and vanity".

Suffice to say, critics such as Mauss and others have reintepreted Malinowskis' interpretation of the Kula rationale.

Other Notes in this Category

1. Malinowski and the Kula
2. Marcel Mauss - The Gift
3. Marilyn Strathern's Relational Approach to Exchange
4. Some Key Terms

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