A Brief Critical History of Charity and Social Protection Based on the Gift Concept, with Mauss, Jaures and Wresinski

Posted on 10 June 2017

June 7, 2017: The City’s Outcasts in Search of their History

Round table: Revisiting History From the Perspective of the Most Excluded

Philippe Chanial, a sociologist, is a senior lecturer in social sciences and director of the Center for Study and Research on Risk and Vulnerability (CEEReV) at the University of Caen.

A Brief Critical History of Charity and Social Protection Based on the Gift Concept, with Mauss, Jaures and Wresinski – Philippe Chanial

This presentation will attempt to draw lessons from the history of charity and social protection, looking at both through the lens of gift theory. “Giving things to the poor” makes sense only if people living in poverty are seen not just as “the poor” or people bound up with and trapped by an asymmetric relationship based on assistance. “Giving to the poor” has meaning only if people living in poverty are seen not just as recipients, but also as subjects who are capable of giving in turn and of having a role in a shared space of reciprocal giving.