The spirit of business: pawnshops in Ulaanbaatar

TY - JOUR

T1 - The spirit of business

T2 - pawnshops in Ulaanbaatar

AU - Højer, Lars

PY - 2012/2/1

Y1 - 2012/2/1

N2 - Exploring the Mongolian pawnshop institution through the analytical lens of anthropological exchange theory, this article argues that commodification has boosted the flow of dangerous agency and 'spirit' by easing the flow and exchangeability of belongings. While the distinction between gifts and commodities appears in Mongolian ethnography, it is neither stable nor definite, and it is argued that commodification at the pawnshop might actually serve to spiritually charge people and objects and thereby enhance their social agency and gift-like aspects.

AB - Exploring the Mongolian pawnshop institution through the analytical lens of anthropological exchange theory, this article argues that commodification has boosted the flow of dangerous agency and 'spirit' by easing the flow and exchangeability of belongings. While the distinction between gifts and commodities appears in Mongolian ethnography, it is neither stable nor definite, and it is argued that commodification at the pawnshop might actually serve to spiritually charge people and objects and thereby enhance their social agency and gift-like aspects.

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0964-0282

VL - 20

SP - 34

EP - 49

JO - Social Anthropology

JF - Social Anthropology

IS - 1

ER -