The Gift of Thanks: The Roots, Persistence, and Paradoxical Meanings of a Social Ritual
by Visser, Margaret
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 0002007886
- ISBN 13
- 9780002007887
- Seller
-
Amherst, Nova Scotia, Canada
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Harpercollins. Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. 2008. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. 0002007886 . Stiff unmarked book in crisp dust jacket. ; 6.75 X 1.5 X 9.25 inches; 512 pages .
Synopsis
Known as an ‘anthropologist of everyday life,’ Margaret Visser has, in five award-winning books, uncovered and illuminated the intriguing and unexpected meanings of everyday objects and habits. Now she turns her keen eye to another custom so frequently encountered that it often escapes notice: saying ‘Thank you.’ What do we really mean by these two simple words? This fascinating inquiry into all aspects of gratitude ranges from the unusual determination with which parents teach their children to thank, to the difference between speaking the words and feeling them, to the ways different cultures handle the complex matters of giving, receiving, and returning favors and presents. Visser illuminates the fundamental opposition in our own culture between gift-giving and commodity exchange, and the similarities between gratitude and its opposite, vengefulness. The Gift of Thanks considers cultural history, including the modern battle of social scientists to pin down the notion of thankfulness and account for it, and the newly awakened scientific interest in the biological and evolutionary roots of emotions. With her engaging combination of curiosity and erudition, Visser once again reveals the extraordinary in the everyday.
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Details
- Bookseller
- B-Line Books
(CA)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 62548
- Title
- The Gift of Thanks: The Roots, Persistence, and Paradoxical Meanings of a Social Ritual
- Author
- Visser, Margaret
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- Edition
- First Edition; First Printing
- ISBN 10
- 0002007886
- ISBN 13
- 9780002007887
- Publisher
- Harpercollins
- Place of Publication
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Date Published
- 2008
- Keywords
- 0002007886
- Bookseller catalogs
- Culture;
Terms of Sale
B-Line Books
Return: If the book is not as described, we will refund cost of book and shipping. If for any reason the buyer does not want the book, even though it is as described, we will offer a refund minus shipping both ways (within 14 days).
About the Seller
B-Line Books
Biblio member since 2003
Amherst, Nova Scotia
About B-Line Books
B-Line Books is an internet business operating from my large home in Amherst, Nova Scotia. I am a retired English teacher with a lifetime of gathered books for sale. Presently, about 24,000 books in 90 categories are listed with an emphasis in the humanities. I look for books I am interested in myself, and feel that most of the inventory is of high quality. See for yourself.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Crisp
- A term often used to indicate a book's new-like condition. Indicates that the hinges are not loosened. A book described as crisp...
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