Blogpost #4: Cannibalism

There are meat lovers and vegetarians. But if you eat the flesh of humans, you're in the cannibal category, my friend.

Cannibals and people diagnosed with Windigo Psychosis have a certain thing in common, they both crave for the taste of human flesh.

There was an article that I've read entitled, "Ten Things You've Always Wondered About Cannibalism" from the site www.businessinsider.com which was written by Lauren Brown. Cannibalism was practiced since the time of the Homo Antecessor, the link between the Neanderthals and Homo sapiens. And it still practiced by some people today. There is no law against the consumption of human flesh. Most criminals who commit this usually gets charged of murder and necrophilia. No one really knows the real reason of why people resort to cannibalism even though food sources are available. Aside from ritualistic and survival cannibalism, there's only speculation as to why criminal cannibalism occurs. Psychologists have speculated that it may relate to childhood trauma relating to separation anxiety from the mother and resulting oral aggression.There are references to cannibalism have to do with the siege of Jerusalem and what would happen if the Israelites disobeyed God. The article also states that, humans taste like pork. In some of the most horrific cases, are elements of sexual cannibalism where people derive sexual satisfaction from fantasizing about and consuming humans.

According to Miewes in the trials in 2004 and 2006: "I had always dreamt of having a younger brother—someone to be part of me—and I become fascinated with cannibalism as a way to fulfill that obsession."

Cannibalism have been part of our lives since then old days. But through our evolution, this has lessened. There are a lot of theories why cannibalism occurs but none of those actually were actually proven to be a hundred percent true. It's scary because one little thought could eventually make a cannibal. I wouldn't want to be one.

In another article entitled, "Facts About Cannibalism" that was written anonymously in the site of natgeov.com. The term Cannibalism originated from the Carib Indians of the Caribbean. The Carib Indians were accused by their neighbors as being very fierce and of eating people. The Spanish had a problem pronouncing the letter 'r' in Carib, so this became 'Canib' and eventually 'Canibales'. Suprisingly, those who have bitten their fingernails or eaten a bit of our own hair can be counted as a type of cannibal. Also known as auto cannibalism or self cannibalism.Even fairy tales have cannibals. In Snow White, the wicked stepmother wanted to eat Snow Whites heart, the giant in Jack and the Beanstalk ate English men and Hansel and Gretel were captured by an evil child eating witch. The Aztecs are believed to have engaged in Cannibalism in order to appease their Gods. In 1972 an airplane carrying a Uruguayan rugby team across the Andes crashed. Those who didn't die were forced to eat the other victims in order to survive. There is a cannibalistic practice known as Ko Ku and Ko Kan occurred in China. Children would donate parts of their body such as their liver to their sick parents. A Princess called Miao Chuang surrendered her severed hands to her ailing father, after which she was deified. There are many different forms of Cannibalism. Some of the less documented forms include Gastronomic cannibalism which is non survival cannibalism, medicinal cannibalism which involves the consumption of human tissues or bone for medical purposes and sadistic cannibalism which is the killing and eating of individuals out of sadistic or psycho pathological motives.

In a video that was also in this page. There was a man who dared to experience living with cannibals in Papua New Guinea. His name was Piers Gibbon, a reporter and an adventurer. He came to find tribe members who ate human flesh and meets with members of the once-feared Biami tribe and witnesses their ritual techniques.

According to Gibbon regarding to his experience of seeing those people eat human flesh, "It's a fine line to tread between seeing just that which is shocking and trying to put it into context."

Well, Gibbon is certainly proved that he is a brave, curious, and open-minded man because of what he did. He explored and saw the ultimate taboo being practiced. I couldn't stomach much of the content but I've learned enough. Cannibalism is something that has been around a thousand years ago and has been practiced by our ancestors yet we consider it as a wrong thing to do which is ironic. Because they've done it, why can't we? I'm not saying that we should be cannibals or anything because I find it really disgusting. But how came something that was done years and years back is considered wrong today? I just hope that cannibalism wouldn't be our last resort.