It's not a different or less formal way of describing sale or barter, it's a different logic.
For example, while gifts tend to be reciprocal among equals, they'll often deliberately be slightly more or less valuable so that it's hard to keep track of who has given more.
But also, gifts in heirarchal relationships tend to be uneven. For example, a gift from a chief to a subject is going to be greater than the subject's return gift.
In some places you'll even see competitive gift giving between powerful people as a form of power jockeying.
I think a lot has been lost in the Bible since we've lost the context for what gifts meant in biblical society. Were people flexing on Jesus by giving him gifts? Challenging him? Meeting his needs?
It’s not a different or less formal way of describing sale or barter, it’s a different logic.
Right, I meant that in modern society more directly transactional interactions have replaced these. Also what makes it "informal" is just the fact that there isn't an exact record of credit, it would be mostly vibes except in specific circumstances (such as when the law gets involved).
It's not a different or less formal way of describing sale or barter, it's a different logic.
For example, while gifts tend to be reciprocal among equals, they'll often deliberately be slightly more or less valuable so that it's hard to keep track of who has given more.
But also, gifts in heirarchal relationships tend to be uneven. For example, a gift from a chief to a subject is going to be greater than the subject's return gift.
In some places you'll even see competitive gift giving between powerful people as a form of power jockeying.
I think a lot has been lost in the Bible since we've lost the context for what gifts meant in biblical society. Were people flexing on Jesus by giving him gifts? Challenging him? Meeting his needs?
Right, I meant that in modern society more directly transactional interactions have replaced these. Also what makes it "informal" is just the fact that there isn't an exact record of credit, it would be mostly vibes except in specific circumstances (such as when the law gets involved).