Cannibalism

607 Words2 Pages

There are many ways to die. Old-age, sickness, and starvation are common ways in the world today; however, being killed and eaten is not as typical. Cannibalism happens in various religions and for survival and sadistic purposes and is still happening to this day, but being a cannibal has some pros and cons when it comes to health.
Cannibalism is the eating of human flesh by another human being. In some cases, it is used for religious purposes. Some people believed that if they ate someone else’s body, they would obtain the skills and powers that the deceased had when they were alive. It is also thought that tribes in South America and Africa would eat their enemies after they killed them. This symbolized their victory and the defeat of their adversaries. Archeologists have details to believe that people from the tribes would eat their loved ones after they passed to show their adoration and confirm that the person would be reincarnated back into their tribe (Vizental). Cannibalistic behavior has occurred for many purposes that are not related to religion.
Cannibalism commonly happens for survival purposes. In 1846, settlers moving west decided to take a shorter way to California. It was spring time, and they got stuck in the middle of a blizzard in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. As people started to freeze to death and starve, the other settlers ate the remains. This group of settlers lost half of their original 90 people. Without cannibalism, all of the settlers would have died. The group is now known as the Donner Party (Weiser). Another form of cannibalism has nothing to do with survival. It is sexually related. Some people devour others to release their sexual frustrations. They may or may not get sexual gratifi...

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...ibalism happens in a couple different instances. In some cases, it is the only way for people to survive in critical situations, but cannibalistic acts happen for sadistic reasons as well. If a person is to feast on another human being’s flesh, they may feel surprising highs, but they will take the risk of contracting fatal diseases.

Works Cited

Bell, Rachael. "Sexual Cannibalism." All about Cannibalism: The Ancient Taboo in
Modern Times. Turner Entertainment Networks, 2013. Web. 02 Dec. 2013.
Robles, Frances. "Top Stories." The Miami Herald. Miami Herald, 08 Aug. 2012. Web.
02 Dec. 2013.
Vizental. "Cannibalism and Religiont- PARAPSYCHOLOGYinfo.com." Cannibalism and
Religion. Parapsychology, 2011. Web. 02 Dec. 2013.
Weiser, Kathy. "The Tragic Story of the Donner Party." The Tragic Story of the Donner
Party. Legends of America, Apr. 2012. Web. 01 Dec. 2013.

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