Book

Reciprocity and Korean society: an ethnography of Hasami

Seoul National University Press • (6) • Published In 1984 • Pages: xviii, 232

By: Chŏn, Kyŏng-su.

Abstract

Chun examines the various kinds of reciprocal exchanges which help to maintain egalitarian social relations in a small fishing and farming community on the island of Chindo, which is off the southwest coast of Korea. He looks at exchanges associated with weddings, ancestral rituals, kinship groups and voluntary associations. He also examines the exchanges between the village community and the more hierarchical ordered external society which includes merchant-buyers, government officials, and military and police officers. According to Chu, the exchanges between villagers and outsiders are not as balanced or diverse as they are in the village and tend to put villagers in a state of dependency. Although gifts to military and police officers may appear as bribes, their intended purpose is to establish a friendly relationship, so that the officers can recognize and accommodate villagers' interests. By extending credit to villagers, merchants and government cooperatives have shackled villagers with debt, which undermines their capacity to exchange with their fellow villagers. The book contains an extensive glosary and transcripts of two voluntary association meetings.

HRAF PubDate

1998

Region

Asia

Sub Region

East Asia

Document Type

Book

Evaluation

Creator Types

Ethnologist

Indigenous Person

Document Rating

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

Ian Skoggard ; 1997

Field Date

1975-1976

Coverage Date

1945-1976

Coverage Place

Chindo Island, Republic of Korea

Notes

Kyung-soo Chun

Revision of author's thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Minnesota, 1982

Includes bibliographical references (p. 221-226) and index

LCCN

85118216

LCSH

Koreans