Human cannibalism: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 16:25, 19 May 2005

Revision as of 16:34, 19 May 2005

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For some species, cannibalism under certain well-defined circumstances, such as the female [[red-back spider]] eating the male after mating, is believed to be a common, if not invariable, part of the life cycle. Larger [[octopus]] preying upon smaller ones is commonly observed in the wild. In [[vertebrate]]s (except for many fish), cannibalism is not generally observed to be uniformly routine or widespread for any given species, but may develop in extremes such as captivity or a desperate [[famine|food shortage]]. For instance, a domestic [[pig|sow]] may eat her newborn young, though this behavior has not been observed in the wild. It is also known that [[rabbit]]s, [[mouse|mice]], [[rat]]s, or [[hamster]]s will eat their young if their nest is repeatedly threatened by predators. In some species adults are known to destroy and sometimes eat young of their species to whom they are not closely related--famously, the [[chimpanzee]]s observed by Dr. [[Jane Goodall]]. Some of these observations have been questioned (for example by [[Stephen Jay Gould]]) as possible products of sloppy research. For example, while there are many observations of female [[praying mantis]]es eating their mates after copulation, there are no known observations of this occurring in the wild; it has only been observed in captivity.

== Cannibalism among humans == Human- The other other white meat. Or dark. depending on who you eat.

It is generally accepted that accusations of cannibalism have historically been much more common than the act itself. During the years of British colonial expansion [[slavery]] was actually considered to be illegal, unless the people involved were so depraved that their conditions as slaves would be better than as free men. Demonstrations of cannibalistic tendencies were considered evidence for this, and hence reports of cannibilismcannibalism became widespread.

The [[Korowai]] tribe of southeastern [[Papua (Indonesian province)|Papua]] are one of the last surviving tribes in the world said to engage in cannibalism.

A few historians, mainly Japanese historians of China in the late 19th and early 20th century, such as [[Kuwabara Jitsuzo]] have claimed the Chinese civilization has a rich history of cannibalism as there are many literary references to cannibalism in Chinese literatyreliterature and points out many references in classic Chinese literature to people eating human flesh. More recently, [[Lu Xun]] uses cannibalism as a motif in some of his short stories. In addition there are widespread rumors that cannibalism was practiced during the Great Leap Forward and [[Cultural Revolution]]. However, there is no strong evidence outside of literary references that cannibalism was socially sanctioned in ancient China, nor has there been any definitive studies that suggest that cannibalism was common during the 20th century in China.

[[Marvin Harris]] has analyzed cannibalism and other [[food taboo]]s.

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Other more contemporary reports have also been called into question.

The well known case of mortuary cannibalism of the [[Fore Tribe|Fore tribe]] in New Guinea which resulted in the spread of the disease [[Kuru epidemic|Kuru]] is well documented and not seriously questioned by modern anthropologists. This case, however, has also been questioned by those claiming that although post-mortem dismemberment was the practice during funeral rites, cannibalism was not. Marvin Harris theorizes that it happonedhappened during a famine period coincident with the arrival of Europeans and rationalized as a religious rite.

The ''[[cannibal]]'' name is a corruption of ''caribal'', the Spanish word for [[Carib]]. There is verbal confluence here. Christopher Columbus originally assumed the natives of Cuba were subjects of the Great Khan of China or 'Kannibals'. Prepared to meet the Great Khan, he had aboard Arabic and Hebrew speakers to translate. Then thinking he heard Caniba or Canima, he thought that these were the dog-headed men (cane-bal) described in [[John Mandeville|Mandeville]]. Others ([[Samuel Purchas]], ''Hakluytus Posthumus'', Volume XIV, 1905: 451) claim that "Cannibal" meant "valiant man" in the language of the Caribs. [[Richard Hakluyt]]'s ''Voyages'' introduced the word to English. Shakespeare transposed it, anagram-fashion, to name his monster servant in ''[[The Tempest]]'' '[[Caliban (character)|Caliban]]'. The Caribs called themselves Kallinago which may have meant 'valiant'. (Raymond Breton 1647, Relations on the Caribs of Dominica and Guadalupe)