cannibalism

Answer 1

Cannibalism refers to the act of humans eating other humans. In zoology, it also refers to the act of animals eating their own species.

From a human perspective, there were many reasons for cannibalism:
1. [Survival Requirement: In ancient times, human productivity was low, and their resistance to disasters was limited. It was easy for food to be scarce. In this case, cannibalism occasionally occurred.]
2. ** Cultural and Religious Elements **:
- Some tribes attached special significance to cannibalism, such as the Alotao tribe on the South Pacific island of Britannia. Their ancestors may have eaten people because of hunger, but later this phenomenon was given religious significance for sacrificial activities, even if there was no shortage of food.
- The Orokawa people of Papua ate their enemies to "capture their souls" and compensate the warriors who died in battle. The Flower people of New Guinean believed that they could keep something called "Nu" by eating the dead.
- Some of the tribes of the Ganges River in India picked up the corpses floating on the river and ate them. They believed that the corpses were gifts from the gods and would not kill or eat meat. They would also smear the ashes of the dead on their bodies and make cups with human skulls.
3. ** The behavior under special concepts **: For example, the Coroway people believed that the sick person was secretly eaten by a "wizard" and filled with ashes. When the dying person said the name of the so-called "wizard", the person would be captured and eaten as a "wizard".
4. [Elements of War: In the history of war, eating the flesh of the enemy was thought to strengthen oneself and scare the enemy.]

From an animal's point of view, the study found that more than 1500 species of animals had cannibalism, most of which was not due to lack of food, but under normal conditions. For example, more than 90% of aquatic animals would have cannibalism at some stage in their life cycle, and some herbivores also had this behavior. In fish, cats, dogs, pigs, bears, lions, elephants, baboons and other species, adult animals had been observed to eat their young. Chimpanzees, which were closest to humans, also had a high rate of cannibalism.

In modern society, cannibalism was extremely rare. In some areas, people who once had cannibalism practices had reduced or stopped this behavior due to changes in their own consciousness and government management. At the same time, cannibalism violated the ethics and legal norms of modern society.