Extra credit—Examples of values that have been commodified

Commodification of wood carving

In fact, the situation described above is a thing of the past. It's not completely changed, but there are a few exceptions now with the penetration of the monetary economy. These changes, presumably, began in the 1960s, when farmers in Zafimaniri began selling crafts. The artefacts were originally purchased by Catholic priests in France to minimize food shortages during bad harvests. Also, around the same time, the museum affiliated with the Antananarivo University, Madagascar's largest institution of higher learning, began collecting specimens from all over Madagascar, and the "folk arts" inherited from the mountains were also extensively collected. As a result, the exquisite wood carvings of Zafimaniri were first recognized overseas and later by the wealthy class in China.



The penetration of monetary economy has brought the following effects to the production of wood carving.

1. Before the beginning of professional commercialization, wood carving, as a self-sufficient daily necessities, was only a short-term labor. The main livelihood of Zafimanniri is farming, and people usually make wood carvings in their spare time. But as cash became a bigger part of the family economy, some farmers began to spend more and more time carving wood. But the pace of change varies from village to village, depending on the distance from the village hall. In Antoetra, a village with a highway and a large number of overseas tourists, there were "full-time" woodcarvers in 2012. They left the farm work to hired men, and they themselves specialized in wood carving, so to speak, becoming professional craftsmen.

People who buy arts and crafts are not limited to tourists from outside the sea. Other Zafimaniri products are also purchased from professional craftsmen, as mentioned in point 3 below.

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