WHAT MAKES A GIFT A GIFT?

So, it is a short observation really. But really a Lacanian one. So, what differentiates a monetary envelope with an actual object as a gift? 

In India, and maybe somewhere else in the world, monetary gifts are given. The hidden thought behind this is it will come handy to the person receiving it. But Most people find it despicable not giving objects as gifts even if the object as gifts cost less than the money as gifts. 

Now, why so? Why such an attachment with Object as gifts? Why a book of cost, say 500 rupees serve better a gift than 500 rupees itself? There is psychoanalysis involved here. 

We need to define here, what Jacques Lacan, the French Psychoanalyst called, Objet Petit a, or Object cause of desire. 

Objet Petit a, or Object cause of desire is the sublime cause why you desire something. And here Lacan is not being spiritual, so the answer is not coordination of senses and mind, but the cause is in the object desire itself. For example: Why do you like a woman? What specifically? If you liked her boobs, the object desire is boobs, but what exactly is the object cause of desire? You cannot really say, what exactly it is? Why you like some extra amount of flesh at a particular region? and what if this extra flesh would have been in her belly? Would you still like her? May be not! This is precisely the sublimity of Objet petit a or Object cause of desire. 

The cause is always in sublimity, not in concrete. This extra sublime cause leads to the accumulation of what Lacan calls, the Surplus enjoyment. Surplus enjoyment of something what makes something or someone desirable and that is what makes extra flesh distinct from a pair of boobs, or say, money distinct from gift. 

So, when you give someone money, it has no surplus enjoyment. It does not have some of your time wasted in thinking what to buy, what will suit the person and so on and so forth, neither it has mind involved in the stupid thinking, what to buy. So, this naive pseudo-gesture of caring makes the gift the gift. This makes the gift an Objet petit a, Object cause of desire. I mean, not specifically the gift but the Objet petit a is something within the gift. 

Many people might think then that I advocate gift giving. No, precisely because, it involves surplus enjoyment and hence a certain capitalist give and take. So, someone who has read Lacan will realize that Surplus enjoyment is what makes enjoyment enjoyable. If surplus enjoyment is lost, enjoyment itself is lost. But, still, I think gift giving should be transactional and ritualistic. No market spirituality of goodness involved, give me 100 rupees instead of 100 rupees gift since you not only gave me 100 rupees, but you also gave me 100 rupees worth freedom, whatever to do with those 100 rupees. 

Isn't freedom very desirable a gift? So, please give me more of this freedom, that is more money and not surplus enjoyment in the form of a stupid gift. Real communism is money giving as gifts with no imagination involved. Just kidding, but not much.