Cultural Anthropology
An almost unheard of tribe, the Kawelka, demonstrate their reciprocity in Ongka 's Big Moka: The Kawelka of Papua New Guinea by participating in a Moka exchange. Traditionally, Moka was an exchange of just pigs. Today, luxurious consumer items have also become a part of the Moka exchange due to globalization. The movie portrays Ongka’s struggle to gather a large number of pigs and items of worth to present at a Moka ceremony for another tribe. The purpose of Ongka’s Moka is to gain rank, respect and recognition for his tribe and himself. Holding Moka can bring the host close to financial devastation however, the political and communal gains from increased status can outweigh the cons. Reciprocity is a mutual/cooperative non-market exchange of favors, merchandise, or rights where a return is generally expected. Examples of the things exchanged are goods or services between two or more individual groups or the exchange of rights or privileges of trade between individuals or groups. Through the process of natural selection, over time humans have formed emotional connections to others and involve in long-term interactions in which reciprocity aids everyone involved. The highlanders of Papa New Guinea otherwise known as the Kawelka believe in marriage not for the love but for pig tending. Usually Kawelka marry to have the woman tend for the pigs while the man is away. Ongka is an example of this, he has many wives take care of his pigs and if the wife’s do not tend to his pigs they are seen as not being responsible. It is the wife’s duty in that culture to tend to the husband’s pig. The Yamamani from the Amazon originate from Brazil. The Yamamani men marry to increase their status and grow stronger. The men find it appropriate to marry women with many brothers so that the man who may have only had two brothers, married into a family with four. The newly wed Yamamani man will now have more brothers to fight along his side if the situation ever called. Cousins also
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