Frontiers of Commoning, with David Bollier Lewis Hyde on Gift Economies & Cultural Commons
6 snips
Jan 1, 2026 
Lewis Hyde, a renowned scholar and poet, dives deep into gift economies and cultural commons. He contrasts the relational ties of gift exchange with the anonymity of cash transactions. Hyde reflects on the contributions of Benjamin Franklin to communal knowledge and critiques the decline of public arts funding. He also discusses how gift dynamics foster creativity, the exploitation risks of openness, and the cultural implications of AI. Throughout, he emphasizes the need for solidarity in addressing climate crises and redefining community values.
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Book Seeded In Mexico
- Lewis Hyde found the seed of The Gift when reading Marshall Sahlins and Marcel Mauss while at Ivan Illich's Cidoc in Mexico.
- He intended a short essay but it grew to a 300-page book exploring how poets make a living outside the market.
Gifts Forge Relationships
- Gifts create and sustain relationships while cash transactions can erase them entirely.
- Hyde argues this relational difference explains why many vocations resist full commodification.
Shoemaker As A Gift Parable
- Hyde uses fairy tales like The Shoemaker and the Elves to illustrate gift maturation and gratitude.
- The shoemaker's gift matures and is released when he finally repays the elves with clothing.
