ABSTRACT
Marcel Mauss’s teaching, writing, and political engagement were unified by a focus on the social norms, shared beliefs, and legal structures that direct human interaction and influence social solidarity. The Gift exemplifies Mauss’s approach: the essay integrates earlier ethnological comparisons and sociological theories with reflections on the positive and negative sides of modern civilization. Mauss’s productivity diminished after publication of The Gift, due to the deaths of many of his closest associates during World War I and the political turbulence of the interwar period. Mauss diverted his energies to political activism and institutional development in the French university system. The Gift exemplifies Mauss’s conviction that comparison based on reliable, detailed, contextualized data about “total social facts” is the key to understanding human societies and individual behavior. In addition to The Gift, Mauss’s body of work includes his studies on magic, religion, money, mourning customs, suicide, Bolshevism and violence.
