A good neighbour is not one that gives

Detachment, ethics, and the relational self in Kenya

Bibliographic Data

ID2253095
AuthorsTom Neumark (0000-0002-0205-3881, Division of Social Anthropology, Free School Lane University of Cambridge Cambridge CB2 3RF UK, corresponding author)
Year2017
Volume23
Issue4
Pages748-764
Publication date2017-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of the Royal Anthropological Institute (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1359-0987 • E-ISSN: 1467-9655
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1467-9655.12699
OpenAlexW2757759370
LanguageEN
Citations received25
References cited27

Since Mauss, anthropologists have been drawn to gifts because they are understood to index the moral, often in contrast to the amorality of the market. Giving is considered to bring people closer together, weaving them into the fabric of sociality. However, in Korogocho, a low-income informal settlement in Nairobi, women recognize the dangers of giving and of closeness. Not only could others be a burden on them, but they could also be a burden on others. Thus, women seek ways in which they can detach from one another. Beginning with the assumption of the relational self, I argue that this detachment is an ethical practice that can be best understood as what I term a 'care for relationships'. In making this argument, this article aims to contribute to debates within the anthropology of ethics and morality concerning social relationships by showing the way in which relationships might be the explicit object of ethical practices

Argument (complex analysis · Closeness · Dualism · Environmental ethics · Epistemology · Morality · Settlement (finance · Sociality · Sociology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Ecology · Medicine · Philosophy · Psychology · Sex work and related issues · Social Psychology · Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies