Endocannibalism and Grief and Wine.

So when I looked through a few of the past blog post of some of my fellow bloggers I noticed a few about cannibalism. It got me thinking of an article I read last semester about evidence of cannibalism in remains found in the south western United States. Which then made me think of the first chapter of Parker-Pearson’s textbook and Yanomami endocannibalism. His description of the practice was very interesting to me. After the initial gross out of “ewwwww they eat their relatives” I started to think about what it actually means. I haven’t had a chance to do much reading about it yet. Lots of other work to be done.

Photo of grave with an Amphora of WIne from Colchester. Taken from  http://www.archaeology.co.uk/specials/the-timeline-of-britain/ad-43-colchester-roman-camulodunum.htm

I had a few minutes to spare and looked up endocannibalism in the Library article database. The first article I started to read is about Berawan in Borneo. It starts with a description of their wine making process and the one possible connection between the two rituals.  A separation of the solids and the liquids. The article by Peter Metcalf then goes on to discuss the validity of these stories of endocannibalism. The Yanomami drink the remains in their practice of endocannibalism. Thats not really where I’m going with this though.

Why similarities to wine making and consumption? Alcohol is a part of a significant amount of funerary practices around the world. From jars of wine being found in graves to bodies being boiled in wine before being transported home during the crusades. Is the connection supposed to represent the switch from physical to immaterial. Does the effect of alcohol on ones perception of the world. We ritualize the voyage of the spirit from our physical reality to the spiritual realm by getting a little closer to it ourselves in a relatively controlled manner. Cultures around the world have used mind altering substances to connect to the spirit realm for anything from medical practices to religious ones. Is it the fermentation process? Does the chemical reaction of the rotting fruits creating alcohol resemble the process of decomposition in a body that much? It does not seem like that far of a lea to me. Makes a weird sort of sense. 

Irish Wake. Taken from:
http://www.diggingthedirt.com/2012/02/10/journeys-through-grief-part-1/hw1873p204271/

The physical and emotional reactions to mourning, in my experience, are very similar to a separation from reality. 

There is also a positive aspect to all of these experiences. Creating a link to more positive times helps the mourning process. After the loss of someone creating a link to the world and the past/spirit realm allows the relationship a form of closure. One last conversation with the deceased. 

This whole “Gay Caveman” thing.

You know, I was prepared to be all offended and upset by it but mostly I’m just bemused. After googleing it (I didn’t bother reading the original article), I checked through a few blog posts and various other articles responding to the original. This was my favorite response that I read, from Wired of all places:

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/04/the-allure-of-gay-cavemen/ 

It just struck me as nicely critical, not truly angry or emotional, and an honest reply. He goes through all the reasons why the article is wrongheaded and then more importantly enters into a discussion as to how humanity is a diverse and many sided thing.

 As a species we’ve been on this planet for a while. It blows my mind that anyone would think that we’ve been a homogenous one note species. The fact that we can point to solid evidence of the diversity of humanities preferences, be they sexual partner, gender orientation, clothing choice, etc. yet people still assume we are a boring one note species.

I am way happier and far more interested in a world that isn’t black and white. Where things exist to degrees and shades. It may be more difficult but its far more rewarding.

I'm not going to go into all the technical errors because most of the articles that are critical do well in fixing those errors but it goes to show how aware you need to be while reading newspaper and on-line articles.

man it's amazing how far one writers lazy ignorance can go.