Gift Giving In Hopi Culture

481 Words2 Pages
The purpose of this paper is to portray the reaction triggered upon reading Peter M. Whiteley’s "Ties that bind: Hopi gift culture and its first encounter with the United States". One often thinks that gift-giving is an obligation without reciprocal reaction, being taught that it is always better to give than to receive. But upon studying other cultures one can discover that gifts can surprisingly have a much deeper meaning in both social and political environments. Whiteley introduces Hopi culture as one that measures wealth in ritual and ceremonial terms rather than material ones. This is why gifts in Hopi culture are meant to be meaningful in the spiritual realm rather than in the material. The fact that the Tesuque delegation gave President Fillmore such a traditional gift, and the fact that it was an offering often given to their Sun god made me believe the Hopi were a very humble tribe. They were comparing Fillmore to the Sun, and were expecting him to reciprocate as such. The Hopi culture’s often manifested mutual expectations come to view in this event, and the common phenomenon of ethnocentrism also shows up in the way the President almost ignores the whole offering. This proves to show that exchanges between two different cultures often prove to be misunderstood even though instructions are provided. As the delegation extended kinship to Fillmore in their gift, the President failed to understand the offering’s true meaning. It seemed a bit rude how Fillmore did not smoke the cigarette or chew the cornmeal as requested in the instructions, because it looked as though he didn’t understand nor appreciate the gift given by the Tesuque delegation. Their offering said “We want to be your brothers,” and the President unknowingly denied their invitation. The fact that the American government did not always protect the interests or lives of Native Americans
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