Cannibalism is the oldest taboo in the world. But in ancient times it was integral to existence in some societies and viewed as both necessary and socially acceptable. Throughout history there have been instances of humans who, finding themselves in extremis, are forced to eat companions out of sheer desperation in order to survive. Do we reserve judgement in these circumstances, or is this behaviour simply an indication of the brutality that simmers under the surface of human civilization? A History of Cannibalism delves into a subject that causes people to recoil in horror and disbelief. It examines the background to many notorious cases, providing no easy answers, but offering a fascinating insight into forces that lie deep within the human psyche.

The cannibal has played a surprisingly important role in the history of thought--perhaps the ultimate symbol of savagery and degradation-- haunting the Western imagination since before the Age of Discovery, when Europeans first encountered genuine cannibals and related horrible stories of shipwrecked travelers eating each other. An Intellectual History of Cannibalism is the first book to systematically examine the role of the cannibal in the arguments of philosophers, from the classical period to modern disputes about such wide-ranging issues as vegetarianism and the right to private property. Catalin Avramescu shows how the cannibal is, before anything else, a theoretical creature, one whose fate sheds light on the decline of theories of natural law, the emergence of modernity, and contemporary notions about good and evil. This provocative history of ideas traces the cannibal's appearance throughout Western thought, first as a creature springing from the menagerie of natural law, later as a diabolical retort to theological dogmas about the resurrection of the body, and finally to present-day social, ethical, and political debates in which the cannibal is viewed through the lens of anthropology or invoked in the service of moral relativism. Ultimately, An Intellectual History of Cannibalism is the story of the birth of modernity and of the philosophies of culture that arose in the wake of the Enlightenment. It is a book that lays bare the darker fears and impulses that course through the Western intellectual tradition.

Banned History is all the juicy bits of History which were excluded from your lessons at school. It unashamedly probes into the darker side of some of Britain's most admired leaders, as well as exploring the hateful and depraved nature of humanity across the last 5000 years. Banned History answers questions which are deliberately avoided by the school curriculum due to the negative light Britain may be portrayed such as the real reason why Britain didn't bomb Auschwitz and how the Transatlantic Slave Trade came into being. Topical issues such as whether Churchill was a racist and how homophobia developed and spread across the world are explored in depth. Concepts which are too horrific to ever feature in the school curriculum are investigated to reveal how many years it takes for incest to wipe out a family; what the most effective method of torture is; and what kind of person tastes best. Written in a bright and breezy tone, Banned History is full of fascinating facts such as who discovered dolphins (and who fell in love with one); why America got involved in the Vietnam war; why Russia turned communist; how Martin Luther King got his name; how many people Europe killed with their colonisation of the Americas; and when and why the British government legalised men hitting their wives. Welcome to the sort of History you definitely didn't get taught at school.

In Cannibalism and the Colonial World, published in 1998, an international team of specialists from a variety of disciplines - anthropology, literature, art history - discusses the historical and cultural significance of western fascination with the topic of cannibalism. Addressing the image as it appears in a series of texts - popular culture, film, literature, travel writing and anthropology - the essays range from classical times to contemporary critical discourse. Cannibalism and the Colonial World examines western fascination with the figure of the cannibal and how this has impacted on the representation of the non-western world. This group of literary and anthropological scholars analyses the way cannibalism continues to exist as a term within colonial discourse and places the discussion of cannibalism in the context of postcolonial and cultural studies.

A comprehensive study of cannibalism in literature and film, spanning colonial fiction, Gothic texts and contemporary American horror. Amidst the sharp teeth and horrific appetite of the cannibal, this book examines real fears of over-consumerism and consumption that trouble an ever-growing modern world.

This work probes the restaging, representation, and reimagining of historical violence and atrocity in contemporary Chinese fiction, film, and popular culture. It examines five historical moments including the Musha Incident (1930) and the February 28 Incident (1947).