In the Absence of the Gift (Paperback)

Paperback. By adopting ideas like development, members of a Papua New Guinean community find themselves continuously negotiating what can be expected of a relative or a community member. Nearly half the people born on the remote Mbuke Islands become teachers, businessmen, or bureaucrats in urban centers, while those who stay at home ask migrant relatives What about me? This detailed ethnography sheds light on remittance motivations and documents how terms like community can be useful in places otherwise permeated by kinship. As the state withdraws, Mbuke people explore what social ends might be reached through involvement with the cash economy. Nearly half the people born on the remote Mbuke Islands become teachers, businessmen, or bureaucrats in urban centers, while those who stay at home ask migrant relatives What about me? This detailed ethnography sheds light on remittance motivations and documents how terms like community can be useful in places otherwise permeated by kinship. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. …