Reciprocity
I. Reciprocity is the process of exchange of goods or services.
A. Reciprocity can be measured.
1. Positive reciprocity occurs when a resource is built up.
2. Balanced reciprocity occurs when the exchange is exactly equal.
3. Negative reciprocity occurs when a resource is drained down.
B. Reciprocity can refer to relations between humans and humans, humans and animals, humans and plants, humans and the earth, or humans and spirits/gods.
1. We can cheat each other, we can extinguish species, we can blaspheme.
a. This is the a basis of the Western concept of tithing.
C. Value is always a subjective measure.
1. Value is determined by cultural attitudes about prestige of owner, rarity, aesthetic quality, utilitarian quality, or other arbitrarily conferred value, like currency.
a. A ring given by Michael Jordan has more value than a ring of equal dollar value given by me or you. A Chumash basket made for the Viceroy of New Spain has more dollar value as an object d’art than an equally fine basket made for sifting flour at home. An albino deerskin is worth more in some places than a red deerskin.
b. The value of rare, inaccessible, or illegal materials tends to stay high. As a material moves farther from the source it tends to become more valuable.
c. Technical quality of material preparation can command its price.
d. In our own culture we see the price of gold set arbitrarily on the world market. The value of dentalia strings was arbitrarily set, and so was differently valued at different locations.
2. Value is measured in units called currency and treasure.
a. currency
i. arbitrarily set value
ii. enough to circulate
b. treasure
i. negotiated value
ii. relative rarity
2. Positive & negative reciprocity are subject to ethical consideration and judgement by individuals and the group.
3. Certain levels of negative reciprocity can be accepted as normal by members of a culture.
a. The concept of a "fair profit" reflects the acceptance of negative reciprocity in our own culture.
b. The definition of usury varies from culture to culture.
D. The benefits of balanced reciprocity are felt at all levels.
1. Results in a decreased level of covetousness and jealousy among the general population.
2. Personal wealth is not accumulated from the labor of the middle and lower classes.
3. People are not confined to a particular class by virtue of birth.
E. The harm done by negative reciprocity is felt at all levels.
1. Results in a large number of crimes motivated by jealousy and privation.
2. Many live at substandard levels to create comfort for richer denizens.
3. Societal stratification increases as the gap between the rich and poor increases.
F. Cultures handle supply and demand in different ways.
1. At the Cahuilla nukil ceremony, families from around the countryside brought whatever surplus they had, food, hides, medicinal herbs, tobacco, or other manufactured goods. The surplus was delivered to the Paha who redistributed the surplus according to the needs of individual families.
2. Burial practices affect the distribution of wealth.
a. Cahuilla cremate all goods with body. Disease prevention?
b. Goods not buried or destroyed at death remain as resources in the community.