Cannibalism - The Last Taboo? (warning, dodgy photos!)

I’ve always been interested in things and subjects where people say ‘Alan, you CANT say that!’ Anything you can’t say or do must, by default, be interesting surely? So, heroin, crack and crystal meths aside, I’ve thus always had a weird fascination with ‘outsider’ subjects, hence the themes in my forthcoming novel. I’ll start today by looking a bit more at cannibalism…

We're all Cannibals, really

There’s a big difference between the classic idea of cannibals, black native guys with bones through their noses, putting khaki clad explorers in big black cooking pots on the fire, and the real, scary idea of people who are basically messed up enough to meet you in a bar, invite you back to their house, and kill and eat you.

Classic C'bals at Work

I think I first became interested in the subject when I got my hands on a copy of ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ on a street in St Petersburg. Actually it was totally accidental, I bought about 20 random dvd’s for about $10 but when I googled it I realized how it had been banned everywhere. It’s not a film for the faint hearted, but I am glad to say, ‘Hostel’ director is Eli Roth is also on my wavelength here with his forthcoming film  ‘The Green Inferno’ (which looks amazing I must say) – set in Peru, about a bunch of not particularly likeable American deforestation activists, who end up as dinner. Which is basically the same story as cannibal holocaust.

But eating another human being. Even the thought of it makes most people queasy. Why? There is of course the why factor. What would go through a rational mans mind to consciously do such a thing?

I'm not actually sure this is real but...what the hell???

In ‘The Age of Aquarius’, cannibalism takes a number of basic forms (I wont tell you about them all here, just some examples.)

 

Beautiful romantic scene from Cannibal holocaust, which basically got it banned all round the world.

Firstly, slaves are eaten, simply as a show of complete subjugation over another human being. ‘I’m so rich, I can afford to buy this persons whole existence’ is the message. So, to fill market demand, slaves are bred from birth, to want to be eaten. This is the pinnacle of their very lives. Powerful (and sociopathic) people, want to invite their friends to dinner parties, and show off how rich they are, by feeding them corn fed humans, who are eager and willing to be eaten alive.

The second form is of course through ignorance. This isn’t rocket science. Do you actually know what is in your ‘all beef hot dog?’ Does that look like beef to you? It’s basically the same with all ‘reformed’ meat. It could be anything. Including your cousin.  

Aye right, of course it's 'chicken'

Later on in the book, as civilization breaks down, the weak are hunted like dogs. As in the movie ‘alive’ where the plan crash survivors eat their dead because they’d die otherwise, this is merely survival and, unlike veganism, quite possibly within the bounds of rational human behavior. 

In short, cannibalism is most probably a potentially natural thing to do. It's the murder that precludes it thats weird.