What Would You Say To The Cannibal Question?

Lots and lots of TRIGGER WARNINGS. DEATH, STARVATION, MURDER, AND CANNIBALISM. DUH. Don’t read if this topic is too upsetting for you.

As a teen wearing a chain mail necklace with a giant ankh and perpetually smelling a purple hair dye, it'll probably come as no surprise that one of my top fictional crushes with Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Dr. Lecter was an art lover; a gentleman and a scholar; and a gourmet chef. So what if his preferred protein happened to be human. Is that so wrong?

Cannibalism in Lithuania 1571

In 10th grade health class I was assigned to do a report on mad cow disease. Now I won't rehash the entirety of the report here, however I discovered the disease is known as a prion disease and is passed from cows eating infected meat in non-consensual cannibalism. I learned that a very similar disease, almost a human equivalent, called Kuru, was spread much the same way...through cannibalism.The Fore people of Papua New Guinea were famous for contracting Kuru in the 1950s as part of their mortuary rights. These rituals included eating the brain and other organs of their deceased loved ones. (This particular act is known as both Necro cannibalism-meaning the person was dead before being eaten-and endo-cannibalism -meaning the tribe was eating one of their own.) Fun fact: I got an “A”on my report, although strangely I was never asked to give another oral report in that class again.

In researching this post, I have discovered more recent research which involving the Fore tribe who have now developed a genetic resistance to the brain eating disease. Scientists have identified the gene G127V in tribe members and found it also protected against other forms of fatal prion related degenerative brain disorders. Prions are an abnormal, miss-folded proteins that are transmittable; forcing their miss-folded shape onto nearby normal versions of the same protein. These prion proteins lead to brain damage and are almost always fatal. Scientists now recognize a link between the process involved in prion related diseases and what happens in common dementia such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. This is of course is not to say one should eat one’s neighbor Fred to gain resistance to Alzheimer’s, as the science of this is a long ways off.

Similar examples of endo-cannibalism are the Korowai tribe of New Guinea; the last known group of people that still engage in cannibalism. Although they practice endo-cannibalism, it is important to note that they are killing and eating what they believe are evil witches. This evil witch spirit, called khakhua, possesses a tribe member, killing him and replacing his insides with hot ash. It is then the duty of tribal members to kill this khakhua in an act of revenge for killing their tribesman. The body is then dismembered and the parts are wrapped in palm leaves, distributed among the clan members, and then cooked like a pig. To the victor goes the spoils, I suppose, as the person that kills the khakhua gets to keep the skull as a trophy. The Korowai only eat the khakhua; they will not eat enemy tribesman or outsiders. I still would not recommend a visit to the Korowai tribe however; just because they will not eat you doesn't mean they won't kill you.

Back to our beloved Dr.Lecter. First portrayed by Brian Cox in the film Mindhunter and made famous by the Oscar award winning performance of Sir Anthony Hopkins in 1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, Dr. Lecter sprung from the mind of Thomas Harris. Harris initially was rather tight lipped about his inspiration for his cannibalistic serial killer forensic psychiatrist, which should come as no surprise upon learning the inspiration in question was still alive at the time of release of the book and several of the movies. Dr. Alfredo Ballí Treviño, a Mexican surgeon, was convicted of murdering his boyfriend and chopping up his body. Fans of the 2013 show Hannibal should take note: it’s canon! Thomas Harris met with Treviño in a prison interview where Harris was struck by the elegance of the doctor even while he was describing different methods of torture. After 20 years in prison, Treviño was released in 2000 and died in 2009. There is no evidence to suggest that Treviño consumed his victim. Harris most certainly used elements of Ed Gein and Ted Bundy in his creation of character Jamie Gump aka Buffalo Bill, but elements of Bundy are reflected in Dr.Lecter as well. Ted Bundy’s relationship with Robert Keppel, a detective on the Green River Killer case, in which Bundy’s letters to the detective often expressed his theories surrounding the motivations and psychology of the killer, very clearly became a model for the characters of Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling.

Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal in 1991 and Mads Mikkleson as Hannibal in 2013

Fictional doctors aside, there are perhaps two other events that you think of when someone says “cannibalism.” The Donner Party (also known as The Donner-Reed Party) set out from Independence, Missouri on May 12, 1846. At the rear of a wagon train of nearly 500, were the 32 members of the Donner-Reed Party in 9 wagons. This was to be mistake number one, as this way considered to be very late in the season to make the trip. Within a week of leaving Independence, our plucky emigrants were joined by a group lead by William Russel and several other families. By June 16th, our travelers roll into Laramie, Wyoming, having traveled 450 miles. Keep in mind, the wagons rolled into Laramie; almost everyone walked. It was important to try to preserve the energy of the oxen as much as possible. The late date was all okay though, as party leaders George Donner and James Reed had both read Lansford Hastings’ The Emigrants Guide to Oregon and California, published the year prior, which extolled the virtues of a lesser known path to California that would shave 300 miles off their journey. Small, itsy-bitsy side note: Hastings had never actually traveled this new route, but he looked at a lot of maps and surmised that, you know, it would totally work. This route had it’s share of detractors, one of whom met the party in Wyoming and told James Reed that it was best to take the well established route. Now while all this was going on with the Donner-Reed Party, Hastings was now in the field actually exploring his path. He set riders back to alert travelers that he would meet them at Fort Bridger if they wanted help navigating his Hastings Cutoff route. Mistake number two. On July 20th, our travelers set out for Fort Bridger.

Donner Party Map

Fort Bridger was a crossroads moment for our group;

they could still rejoin the Oregon Trail or they could venture on through Hastings Cutoff, being led by the man himself. They miss Hastings by just a few days. They decide to press on, following in Hastings’ footsteps. Almost instantly, the trail became much more difficult. There are no traditional trail markings and the terrain is rough and rocky, making it very difficult for the wagons. On August 6th, they find a note from Hastings encouraging them to stay were they were until he could make his way back to them. They send out a few of their fastest riders to catch up with Hastings and escort him to their group. Some time between leaving the note and the riders from the Donner Party reaching him, Lansford has a change of heart and decides not to return to help the Donners. In researching this, I often found myself wondering if Hastings ever had any sense of guilt over the deaths he undoubtedly contributed to, but I doubt it. He later moved to Brazil and wrote a book, you guessed it, The Emigrant’s Guide to Brazil. He died in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands in 1870. Back to the story, without their promised guide, the decision had to made on whether they should turn back. At James Reed’s urging, they decide to press on. They are moving slowly enough at this point that they are reached by the Graves family, who confirm that they are some of the last to attempt the crossing, meaning, there would be no other families coming after them. (The GRAVES family?! Could you get a little more prophetic?!) By August 20th, they can see the Great Salt Lake and begin their decent out of the mountain range they had been traversing with such difficulty. Sadly, it does not get easier. Now they are in the Great Salt Lake Desert, with not water and no grass for the oxen to eat. Tempers are running short in the extreme heat and they have lost faith in the Hastings Cutoff but have no option now in this desert; they must continue on. They lose many horses and cattle in the dessert and waste valuable time trying to recover them. On September 26th, the Donner Party rejoins the traditional trail along the Humboldt River. This shortcut cost them two months. In late October, a fight breaks out in which James Reed ends up killing a teamster. It is decided that Reed will be banished from the group as they continue on. On October 20th, 1846, they make it to Truckee Lake (not to lean in to too much foreshadowing, but you might know it by it’s current name: Donner Lake). Under the impression that there won’t be heavy snow until mid November, they decide to make camp to rest and recover for a few days. It snows that night. They quickly make rickety log cabins, three cabins fit 60 people. The Donner family was about five miles away in tents for 21 people. Some made a lean-to against large boulders. It snowed again on November 4th and didn’t stop for the next 8 days.

Having already wasted two months, you can imagine that food was running out already. Although not completely frozen, none of the group had much experience with fishing and there was little available in terms of foraging in the cold. They began eating the oxen and remaining horses. On November 12th and again on November 22nd, they sent parties out but they returned quickly being unable to get very far. Franklin Graves began making snowshoes and a party of 17 went forth again on December 16th. Now known as “The Forlorn Hope,” the group set out with six days provisions and a pair of Native American guides they hired back at Fort Bridger. Back at camp, one family did nothing to their family dog because all puppies are happy puppies (read between the lines. I can talk murder all day, just don’t hurt the dog.) Fighting snow blindness and fatigue, the Forlorn Hope team got lost and confused. Mental fatigue and hallucinations began occurring as well and by December 24th, after two days without food, Patrick Dolan says what they all have been thinking: someone must die so the others can live. Now, they decided that killing was not an option but if someone were to die, that was a different story. Their Native American guides sneak away in the night, horrified and unwilling to eat human flesh. Three people die between December 24th and December 26th, the day they decide they finally must eat. Unable to look one another in the eye, they are able to start a fire and begin cooking Patrick Dolan’s flesh over the flames. (Hey, he was the dude to bring it up in the first place. Guess it is only fair.) They eat in shifts and as they have multiple bodies, they ensure that no one is eating the remains of a loved one. More die at their little camp and by December 30th, they are able to set out once again, having dried the meat into a jerky like substance to carry with them. They continue to hike through the wilderness for many days and by January 8th, they happen upon their former Native American guides. They shoot and kill them and now have a fresh supply of meat to carry on. On January 12th, Forlorn Hope stumble into a Miwok village much to the horror of the occupants. Their nearly skeletal visage terrified the locals but they managed to help and guide the six remaining party members to an emigrant settlement on January 17th. Their journey from Truckee Lake took 33 days.

On February 4, 1847, a rescue expedition set out to find the survivors back at the Lake. Upon reaching the camp on February 19th, they found things had deteriorated badly. A woman struggled out of a cabin to look at the crew and asked, “Are you from California or Heaven?”13 people had died at camp and our fearless leader George Donner lay dying from a cut to his hand that became gangrenous. The rescue mission gathered up as many as they could take safely back down the mountain. 21 people were rescued in the first group. Halfway down the mountain, the group encountered another rescue mission. Remember James Reed, the guy they had cast out for killing someone? He had made it all the way to Sutter’s Fort in California and was determined to rescue his wife and kids. Reed managed to gather up 17 more people and start back down. A snow storm trapped the party for a few days and by the time it was safe to begin the descent again, James’ son Isaac was dead and other members refused to move from their makeshift camp. A third rescue group found this group six days later by which point there were more deaths and the rescuers found body parts boiling away in cook pots. They found an infant crying next to her mother’s half eaten corpse. (If that kid survived, I really hope she had therapy.)

This third party of rescuers included two men that initially were part of Forlorn Hope. They still had kids back at the Lake they hoped to save. Once they reached the campsite, they encountered a German member of the party named Lewis Keseberg, who informed them he had eaten both their children. Grief stricken, the men gathered what survivors they could, leaving behind George Donner (still not dead yet), his wife (that’s some really stupid devotion right there), a woman named Lavina Murphy (she was nearly blind), and Lewis Keseberg (because, well...fuck the dude that ate my kid). By April 4th, the fourth and final rescue party reached Truckee Lake. Anyone want to guess who the only person still alive was? No, it wasn’t George. It was the emaciated Lewis Keseberg who was passed out next to a soup pot filled with the organs of a young boy. He had been surviving on nothing but human flesh despite having supplies left by the previous rescue missions. Keseberg went on to open a brewery and is responsible for introducing the first lager beer to Sacramento. He died on September 3, 1895 at the age of 81. Of the 81 travelers that made camp at Truckee Lake, only 48 survived. Known now as Donner Lake, the area is said to be haunted by the ghost of Tamsen Donner, the devoted wife of George Donner.

Lewis Keseberg

Okay, Ash, but all this happened in the 1840’s, ain’t no way that stuff could happen now....right?!? (Here is were you insert the dun dun dun in your head) On October 13th, 1972, Flight 571 took off from Uruguay bound for Santiago, Chile carrying 19 members of the Old Christian Club rugby union and their friends and family. All told, 45 people were on the flight including their very experienced pilot and their very inexperienced co-pilot. The plane was only four years old and an air force plane that other pilots had nicknamed “the lead-sled.”

The flight should normally take about 90 minutes and included a section of about 11 minutes of pass through the Andes and then a quick descent into Santiago. The co-pilot, who was in control of the plane, with almost zero visibility, radioed ground control asking for permission to land. Trusting that the pilot and co-pilot had accurate readings, ground control granted their request to begin their descent. One problem: the plane had only been in the pass for about a minute, not eleven. As they began to descend through the clouds, they quickly realized this was not where they thought they were a tried to pull up, causing extreme turbulence. The plane was almost vertical as it tried to climb out of the mountains but it was too late as the tail of the plane collided with the side of the mountain. The next collision ripped of the right wing of the plane and tore the tail cone completely off, losing the rear fuselage and 3 passengers and two crew members. One more impact ripped off the left wing two more passengers fell to their death before the remnants of the plane at last came to a stop.

The pilot and co-pilot were killed on final impact as were 3 other passengers. The 33 remaining survivors quickly went to work devising ways of melting water and made sunglasses to avoid snow blindness. They were able to use luggage and the materials from the airplane seats to seal up the hole in the side of the plane to provide them shelter from the outside elements. As this was only supposed to be a 90 minute flight, there was very little food aboard. They had salvaged a transistor radio and learned on day ten that the search for them had been called off. Five more people died.

The wreckage of flight 571

I

The 27 remaining realized that once the food had run out after a week and their attempts at eating cotton and leather from the plane proved futile, they would have to turn to other means of survival. This must have been a difficult conversation as most of the survivors were Catholic and greatly feared eternal damnation. It was only after likening the experience to taking the Eucharist that many decided to go ahead and everyone gave their blessing to be eaten if they perished. The pilot and co-pilot were first to be eaten as it was easier to rationalize eating someone that wasn’t part of their friends or a family member. They dried strips of meat like jerky to make it easier to consume. On October 29th, 17 days after the crash, an avalanche covered the plane and killed 8 more people and trapped them for three days. By October 31st, The managed to dig their way out only to find a blizzard still raging outside and forcing them to stay in the fuselage. They had to begin eating the bodies of their friends. In early November, the decision was reached that they must send people for help.

As this is the Southern Hemisphere we are talking about, temperatures were starting to rise as Spring was on the way. The four that were chosen to leave were given the warmest clothes, extra rations of meat, and after a few days spent gathering their strength, they set out to find help. They headed east on November 15th and after several hours, found the tail section of the plane which contained a box of chocolate, some meat patties, a bottle of rum, cigarettes, a two way radio, and batteries. They decide to camp in the tail that night and resumed travels in the morning. The next night, with no coverage provided by the previous night’s sleeping in the tail, they very nearly froze to death. The decide that they must head back, figuring they can take the batteries found in the tail to the fuselage to repair the transistor radio. Unfortunately the batteries weighed 53 pounds and could not be moved. They continue back to the group in the fuselage. The next day, the four return to the tail with Roy Harley, an amateur radio enthusiast. They are unable to get the radio to work. After days of trying, they head back to the fuselage. Harley lays down in the snow to die having given up all hope, but the team drag him back, refusing to let him die. Three more do die in this time.

The survivors realize they must head west and they must have some way to stay warm at night. They begin to fashion one giant sleeping bag out of copper wire, insulation from the rear of the fuselage, and waterproof cloth. On December 12th, the three strongest members of the team set out West. It was slow going in the mountains with members that stayed behind able to see them climbing for days after they had left. At the top of the mountain they see a valley and begin making their way toward it with Nando Parrado saying to the other, “We may be walking to our deaths, but I would rather walk to meet my death than wait for it to come to me,” to which fellow survivor Roberto Canessa said, “You and I are friends, Nando. We have been through so much. Now let's go die together." Bros being bros, I tell you what.

Nando Parrado with the rest of the rugby club

They continue to hike down toward the valley and the snow line slowly disappears behind them. On the ninth day of their trek, they see cows. Where there is livestock, there must be people. On day ten, they reach a river and begin to make camp when suddenly they see across the river: people. Three men on horseback are across the river but due to the noise of the river, our travelers can’t be heard. One of the men shouts at them, “Tomorrow!” promising to return the next day. The next day, Chilean man Sergio Catalán arrived back at the river and retrieved a rock with a note tied around it thrown by Parrado which read, “I come from a plane that fell in the mountains. I am Uruguayan. We have been walking for ten days. I have a wounded friend up there. In the plane there are still fourteen injured people. We have to get out from here quickly and we don't know how. We don't have any food. We are weak. When are you going to come to fetch us? Please, we cannot even walk. Where are we?” (Translated to English) Sergio managed to throw the travelers some bread, got back on his horse, and began a ten hour journey to get help. Now, 1972 of course there were cars, but understand this is a very rural part of the Chilean mountains. The news of survivors reached the army in San Fernando, Chile and helicopter rescue began. Due to the elevation and weight limits of the helicopter, only half the survivors could be removed that first night. I’m sure that was fun conversation about who had to stay one extra night. The seven remaining members were left with supplies and rescuers that had volunteered to stay with them.

After 72 days after the crash, the survivors were saved. They were all in bad shape, severely dehydrated, frost bitten,suffering malnourishment, broken bones, altitude sickness, and scurvy. The survivors wanted to tell the families of the victims what had happened privately but unfortunately that was not to be. It was leaked to the press about the cannibalism that had occurred and they were forced to hold a press conference only a week after being saved explaining their actions.

It’s strange to think that of the sixteen men to survive, fifteen are still alive today. The group have yearly meetings on the anniversary of their rescue. Their salvation, Sergio Catalán passed away on February 11, 2020 at age 91. Roberto Canessa ran for president of Uruguay in 1994 and is now a retired pediatric cardiologist.

There have been countless other stories of cannibalism over the years. One might remember the 2001 case of Armin Meiwes who posted an ad on the now defunct Cannibal Cafe, a website for those with cannibal fetishes. In March 2001, Armin received a response from Bernd Jürgen Armando Brandes, who agreed to be Friday night dinner. Now, it’s unclear if Brandes actually consented to being killed and eaten or if he had just agreed to be partially eaten. Regardless, after Meiwes chopped off Brandes’ penis, they both attempted to consume it. First raw, and then fried with garlic, salt, and pepper (yum!). Meiwes then put Brandes in a bath while he slowly bled to death (Meiwes finished the job by stabbing him in the throat). Meiwes was caught in December of the same year once again posting an ad for a willing victim. Dude videotaped the whole thing so, yeah, he is serving life in prison and has since become a vegetarian.

I guess that leaves one question. What would it take to make you decide on cannibalism? Studies show that a person can go 30-40 before severe starvation begins and death occurs at 45-60 days in as evidenced by the hunger strikes in Belfast prisons in the 1980’s. Of course, other than Armin there, people were under extreme conditions. Not only are they burning through calories from the efforts of hiking or building fortifications of their sleeping quarters, they are also extremely cold. Symptoms of hypothermia mimic those of starvation, so they may not have been literally starving but they THOUGHT they were. Most of the people in these accounts simply did what they had to do to survive, only guys like our lovely Lewis Keseberg actually murdered for food. And yet, it would still be hard to look at someone knowing they engaged in cannibalism. You would almost certainly look at them differently, right? I will leave you with that thought to ponder, dear reader, as it is now my dinner time.

It’s pork not people