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The gift of thanks : the roots and rituals of gratitude / Margaret Visser.

by Visser, Margaret.

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Boston : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009.

458 p. ; 24 cm.

Pt. 1. Saying -- "What do you say?" -- No thanks -- It's only natural -- "I'm so sorry" -- "Thank you very much indeed" -- Pt. 2. Giving, receiving, returning -- Why give back? -- All wrapped up -- The three graces -- Give it away -- The give-and-take of everyday life -- Pt. 3. Meaning -- Votive offerings -- Unpacking "gratitude" -- The fourth law of nature -- After all -- Tipping -- Freedom and equality -- Gestures -- Memory and narrative -- Pt. 4. Feeling -- Emotions -- Feeling grateful -- Learning and lasting -- Pt. 5. Rejecting -- The marble-hearted fiend -- We are not grateful -- The poisoned gift -- Pt. 6. Recognizing -- Gratitude instead -- Partiality and transcendence -- Recognition.

"The Gift of Thanks" considers cultural history, including the modern battle of social scientists to pin down the notion of thankfulness and account for it, and the newly awakened scientific interest in the biological and evolutionary roots of emotions.

This fascinating inquiry into all aspects of gratitude ranges from the unusual determination with which parents teach their children to thank, to the difference between speaking the words and feeling them, to the ways different cultures handle the complex matters of giving, receiving, and returning favors and presents. It also illuminates the modern battle of social scientists to pin down the notion of thankfulness and discover its biological and evolutionary roots.

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