Richard Borshay Lee, a Canadian anthropologist, was born in 1937. He is a Professor of Anthropologist at the University of Toronto. He is well known internationally for his ethnographic studies of hunting and gathering societies. His essay, "Eating Christmas In The Kalahari" was published in 1969. In his essay, he shares a memory of Christmas feast he had with the !Kung Bushmen. He went there to study the hunting and gathering subsistence economy of the !Kung. He shares about the Christmas ox custom of the !Kung, in which they sacrifice a fat and healthy ox. So in response to show gratitude to the !Kung, Lee brings them a fat and healthy slaughtered ox. But instead of being thankful the !Kung's criticized and said that it is a worthless and thin ox. But later he comes to know that it is the way !Kung's receive gifts. They "fool people about that." According to the !Kung's culture if they praise the young for the slaughtered ox, they will be filled with pride. And to avoid making them proud and arrogant they insult the gifts, but in locked rooms they praise it.
Torvald means that if he lets his wife does what she wants or get away with certain acts he will become the laughing stock of the town. For the time it was crucial that the man was the leader of the household so if it looks like he has lost that authority it will damage his reputation.
