Gender in the gift and reciprocity: the moral bases of care

Identifier:  PC:3362

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/PC3362

Authors:  Comas-d'Argemir, Dolors

Abstract:
This article makes a theoretical reflection on the moral principles that co-exist in responsibilities for caring. The gift, reciprocity and merchandise are quite different moral systems that often pull in different directions; there is not just one ethic of care. Obligation and debt are intrinsically related. Being indebted is the very base of the moral system that organizes the responsibility for caring, but this moral obligation is unequally shared between men and women, and between the family and society as a whole. A sense of social justice requires a broader sense of obligation. It is in the framework of social debt where we can make progress towards a balanced distribution of caring between sexes and generations, and towards sharing responsibility among the individual, the family, the state and the community.