Journal article
"You Have Been Very Thoughtful Today": The Significance of Gratitude and Reciprocity in Missionary-Hawaiian Gift Exchange
Pacific historical review, Vol.79(4), pp.545-572
11/01/2010
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/111309
Abstract
In October 1819 the first company of American missionaries set sail for the Hawaiian Islands with the express intent of converting its inhabitants to Christianity. The missionaries earnestly believed that they might provide Hawaiian Islanders with the dual gifts of civilization and salvation and were eager to set about the work of bestowing them. Missionaries were surprised to discover that Hawaiians had gifts of their own to bestow, interrupting the missionary agenda almost from the moment of their arrival. Exploring the unspoken and often symbolic language of gifts, this article offers a re-examination of early Hawaiian-missionary contact to argue that Hawaiian and missionary women——who situated themselves at the very center of the exchange of things——were powerful figures in this missionary and colonial drama.
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Details
- Title
- "You Have Been Very Thoughtful Today": The Significance of Gratitude and Reciprocity in Missionary-Hawaiian Gift Exchange
- Creators
- Jennifer Thigpen - The author is a member of the history department at Washington State University, Pullman
- Publication Details
- Pacific historical review, Vol.79(4), pp.545-572
- Academic Unit
- History, Department of
- Identifiers
- 99900548456501842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article