Teacher’s hau – the circulating gifts in the work of professors at a public university

Abstract

The study aimed to analyze the work of university professors from the perspective of the gift. Content analysis of remote interviews with 11 professors during the pandemic period reveals the impoverishment of solidarity bonds in the face of individualism and competition. The gift persists through the teaching hau and resistance to the pressure for production. The rupture of the gift cycle (excessive classes, low-quality articles) generates guilt-ridden, unethical subjects. The findings prompt reflections on Science and Education under the aegis of neoliberalism, highlighting the power of Maussian theory as a means of interpreting sociability.