ABSTRACT
Unlike the gift, the parasite does not incite reciprocity, but defies it. The parasite is a reverse of the gift and the obligation to give depicted by Mauss. While the gift is a token of generosity, parasitism is all about abuse and exploitation. For the parasite, the gift is a given, a cause and precondition for its existence. In this sense, the gift is not only given to the parasite, but the gift gives the parasite: the parasite is born from the gift. One could even say that the parasitic chain is the kula ring reversed, where the cyclical movement of the gift is viewed as a series of stills. Ultimately, the gift or its equivalent must always return home, to its origin. The parasite merely gives the empirical possibility of the event of the gift. Accordingly, in a sense the repayment of a gift can be seen as an effort to liberate oneself from the position of the parasite.
