GIFT, THE

In this, his most famous work, Marcel Mauss (1872-1950) presented to the world a book which revolutionized our understanding of some of the basic structures of society. A renowned anthropologist, Mauss sought in this work to transcend empirical observation and reach deeper realities. In so doing, he inaugurated a new era for the social sciences. By identifying the complex web of exchange and obligation involved in the act of giving, Mauss called into question many of our social conventions and economic systems. As L'evi-Strauss remarked, "Few have managed to read it without feeling the whole gamut of the emotions: the pounding heart, the throbbing head, the mind flooded with the imperious, though not yet definable, certainty of being present at a decisive event in the evolution of science."