Aztecs` Human Sacrifice as the Example of Cannibalism
Cannibalism is a phenomenon that has always wondered people with its ambiguous nature. Despite the fact that cannibalism is now perceived as a deviation from the norm, yet there is documentary evidence that human flesh eating existed in the past. And now, the only difference is in the explanations that people find to cannibalism. In most cases, people believe that it was either way to survive in conditions of hunger, or a part of the culture and sacrificial rituals of the past. Time goes by and scientists put forward new explanations for this phenomenon. Nevertheless, each person creates his or her own opinion about this issue, based on scientific facts. That is why this paper presents an overview of the objective scientific explanation about cannibalism and its causes on the example of Aztec people.
If to analyze the cannibalistic habits of the Aztecs and the more recent societies, there are many examples when modern scientists used to find caves with remains of human bones, which «had been butchered in exactly the same manner as adjacent animal remains, apparently for cooking over a fireplace» (Eckholm , 1986). However, these examples can not be evaluated as a conclusive evidence that cannibalism really existed or the regular basis. Even such obvious examples, when scientists saw a man in New Guinea who ate the meat of a dead relative, can not prove people whether cannibalism is something radically negative or just an element of culture. In fact, even in one tribe people treat human flesh eating as something inhuman or sacred depending on the context of the situation.
It is necessary to say that if people want to get to the truth, they should turn to the archaeologists. Only these experts can tell, whether, for instance, Aztec cannibalism was a manifestation of a systematic way to satisfy the hunger or the need for ritual. It can be seen from the actual location of the bones. Various archaeological studies provide a variety of results. This is the reason why the manifestation of cannibalism often has different interpretations. For example, recent archaeological excavations of Aztec settlement found headless human rib cages without the limb bones, which is more than obvious evidence of some specific priesthood rituals.
Of course, examples of cannibalism were found all over the world. However, if we talk about Aztec cannibalism, there are some evidence of ritual origin of sacrifice in their tribes. As Michael Harner mentions in his "The Enigma of Aztec Sacrifice" (1977), "most of the Aztec poor did not have significant access to this protein source and were forced to be near-vegetarians, subsisting mainly on domesticated plant foods such a maize and beans". It means that for them there was no urgent need in animal protein, as plant foods were a norm for them. Therefore, it can not be said that Aztec people ate human flesh just because of hunger. Harner (1977) also assumes that the right to eat human flesh might have been a real privilege just of some high-titled people.
Bibliography
Eckholm, E. "What is the Meaning of Cannibalism." New York Times (1986): 1.
Harner, Michael. "The ecological basis for Aztec sacrifice." American ethnologist 4.1 (1977): 117-135.
Harner, Michael J. "The Enigma of Aztec Sacrifice." Natural History, April 1977
Vol. 86, No. 4, pages 46-51.
