Introduction

Medieval nuns and priests seldom ate saints bodies; however, when they did so, it was
for specific reasons. Saintly bodies were often guarded, feared, fought for and sometimes even
stolen from fellow Christians to be eaten later !ynum "##$% "&'(. )nterestingly, these
individuals were not described as cannibals at the time and the bodys meaning has greatly
changed over the centuries and cultures; however, ) argue that the reasons for eating bodies
during Medieval *uropean times have been relatively similar to those described by
ethnographers e+amining primitive cannibalistic tribes, in addition to those serial ,illers of our
time. Moreover, the actual act of eating the body generally specific body parts( is highly
gendered in that the consumption of female bodies in particular, has largely been done in order to
obtain the power from these bodies. -his idea that cannibals consume female bodies in order to
obtain their power disturbs the mind.body dualism of early philosophers such as /lato and
0ristotle, simply because cannibals believe the powers of the mind historically viewed as
belonging to males( can be obtained by literal consumption of the body historically viewed as
belonging to females(.
-he power being obtained from the female body does not necessarily pertain to the
power described by 1oucault in his earliest discussions of institutions. 1oucault sees this
power as originating from and through bodies of ,nowledge, rather than a characteristic of the
individual. )n this sense, power is repressive and most often utili2ed by the state or government
to limit the individual. -his occurs when particular ,nowledges or belief systems wor, through
groups to create dichotomies and thus hierarchies of truth3some truths are accepted as real
while others are deemed wrong and unacceptable.( )nstead, the power that cannibals obtain
from the female body is the sort of power that an individual possesses to perform particular roles,
"
Martinez, Katherine.Consuming Female Flesh: A Cultural Analisys of Cannibalism.annual meeting of theAmericanSociological Francisco, CA, Aug 08, 2009 Online <PDF>. 2010-11-23 <http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p307054_index.html>
much li,e the power 1oucault describes in Discipline and Punish. -his type of power is most
particularly seen in patriarchal societies via womens performance of hegemonic se+ roles as
wife or child bearer
"
. )n this paper ) e+amine the power that womens bodies have for the
consumer when literally and metaphorically consumed for transcendence from the wea, body
in Medieval *urope(, to reproduce in cannibalistic tribes(, and the power of desire and
se+uality for serial ,illers(.
)n history there have been several different reasons cited for cannibalism% e+treme
hunger during famines natural and manmade(; after accidents that leave no other choice for
survival; for ritual and religious obligations; to achieve se+ual gratification; as a means to gain
power and control; and, because human flesh tastes particularly good 0s,enasy "##4; !ell
$556(. ) focus on cannibalism, specifically by males, as a means to gain power and control over
female bodies; gaining power and control over another body re7uires that cannibals practice
human agency and freely choose whether to engage in cannibalism. -his free choice also
re7uires that the individual cannibal desire the literal consumption of human flesh in order to
obtain a valued characteristic from the female body that he perceives he cannot obtain by any
other means than through murder, mutilation and consumption. -his desire to ac7uire the
females power from her body can be viewed as the desire for the other that 8udith !utler
$554( describes, in which the individual desires to possess the other as well as be ac,nowledged
by the other. 9f course, this other or the female body has not always been viewed by
:esterners as a desirable body. Simone de !eauvoir "#4#( ac,nowledges that :estern
societies during her times view the female body as vulnerable, wea,, and problematic in lived
"
)n her chapter on the biology of the male and female, Simone de !eauvoir "#4#( paints a rather blea, picture
particularly of the female body in society. She states, -he term ;female is derogatory not because it emphasi2es
womans animality, but because it imprisons her in her se+; and if this se+ seems to man to be contemptible and
inimical even in harmless dumb animals, it is evidently because of the uneasy hostility stirred up in him by woman
"(. 0s her se+, woman and her body are used for procreation a little more.
$
e+perience. <ater, Carol 0dams $554( describes the theoretical female body as being treated
similar to meat. 0ccording to 0dams mostly male( individuals eat meat in order to gain power
from mostly female( animal bodies; thus meat=eating, in general, is very much a gendered act.
)n relation, female bodies have actually been desired and sought out by male cannibalistic
individuals for centuries because of the bodys powers for transcendence, reproduction, and
se+uality. ) discuss this gendered consumption of animal flesh in relation to human flesh and
incorporate three e+amples of cannibalism in history and across cultures that demonstrate the
value of the female and feminine body. ) conclude with a discussion of desire in relation to the
fear of these very bodies perceived as most powerful.
Power Achievement via Flesh Eating
Carol 0dams $554( describes flesh eating in terms of power achievement. She claims,
Meat is a ;power=structured relationship in which power is thought to transfer to the consumer
"##(. Most importantly for the e+amination of the role gender plays in cannibalism, 0dams
claims that meat eating reflects male power for three reasons. 1irst, 0dams describes how
historically it has been mens duty to ,ill the animal that the woman then must clean and coo,.
Second, the myth that males need protein in order to gain strength has largely made men the
carnivore in patriarchal society; vegetarianism has largely been associated with females and
femininity. 1inally, the animals mostly used to produce food e.g., mil, and eggs( and mostly
eaten as food e.g., meat( are female. )n each one of these three e+planations, the male has
ultimate control over the female( animal, coo,, and meal. -he male views himself as gaining
physical control from protein ingestion, and he gains a sense of control by consuming the
dismembered animal body. -he male desires recognition as strong, stable, and powerful; he
achieves this in societies that value the literal and metaphorical consumption of the female body.
'
)n order to ma,e the female animal body edible, 0dams describes the ob>ectification of
the body as an essential step in the process. -he animal body is ob>ectified via the absent
referent, in which the oppressor view?s@ another being as an ob>ect to be consumed 0dams
$554% A&(. 1or instance, 0dams e+amines how the animals body is ob>ectified in language
simply by stating that one is eating meat rather than eating a corpse. Creating an alternate,
and perhaps less violent, term for ones actions helps the individual come to terms with violating
the ob>ect. :ithout its referent point of the slaughtered, bleeding, butchered animal, meat
becomes a free floating image A#(. Similarly, the human flesh being eaten in Medieval
*urope, as described later, is identified as a relic or flesh of Christ, rather than having an
identity of its own. 0lso, the human body being eaten by the serial ,iller becomes an ob>ect of
desire rather than a being. 0lthough animals bodies have been ob>ectified largely through
language and the consumption of such bodies, this has also been the case with female bodies. )n
fact, 0dams argues that the female body has been ob>ectified
$
so much that to some it resembles
meat3it can be butchered and eaten li,e any other animal in the slaughterhouse. 1or cannibals,
however, the female body is meat to be dismembered and consumed.
9ne prominent e+ample of the female body being treated li,e meat comes from 8ac, the
Bipper who butchered several women in the late "#
th
century. 0s an already ob>ectified being in
a patriarchal society, it too, little for 8ac, the Bipper to slaughter these women li,e the butcher
might slaughter an animal. 0lthough the butchering of women is not widespread, it is worth
ac,nowledging those again, mostly male( that have butchered women li,e animals. 8ac, the
Bipper utili2ed surgical techni7ues that the police thought only a s,illed person could have. Ce
would se+ually mutilate the women he ,illed, sometimes ta,ing her uterus. Some police
$
Martha Dussbaum "##A( defines ob>ectification as a human being regarded and.or treated as an ob>ect $A4(.
0s an ob>ect, this person can be used, abused, invaded, and destroyed without much thought for how the person as a
sub>ect feels.
4
described the crimes as something that would only happen to animals. 0dams claims that the
metaphorical butchering of women is >ust as dangerous as the physical butchering done by 8ac,
the Bipper. Seeing women as pieces of meat or ob>ects creates conditions in society where the
woman is something to be possessed and consumed.
:hen womens bodies are ob>ectified, women and not >ust their images become
consumable. -hese bodies may be consumed metaphorically via media imagery !ordo $554(,
as well as literally via serial ,illers such as 0lbert 1ish, 0ndrei Chi,atilo, *dward Eein, and
tribal clans such as the 0nasa2i of Southwestern Colorado -urner "###(. 0lthough many
cannibalistic cultures and clans ate other beings during wars and during famine, many also ate
women and children as they were being sacrificed for the Eods( being worshiped. So, despite
some clans being non=discriminatory in terms of which gender they ate, many have chosen
women specifically. 0s mentioned earlier, womens bodies have been chosen in order to possess
and control these bodies or for the male consumers control and possess these bodies upon
consumption. 0ccording to Cans 0s,enasy "##4(, some early clans engaged in cannibalism
based on the belief that by eating human flesh the consumer essentially incorporates certain
desirable characteristics of the consumed "56(. Most of these clans, however, ate men,
because men are more strongly associated with strength, courage, and health. :omen are most
often associated with wea,ness and vulnerability, so that consumption of their parts in many
clans meant that one would also have to consume male parts to counteract the female parts. 9n
the other hand, these same female bodies that were theoretically wea, and vulnerable were also
consumed in order for the male consumers to increase their reproductive capabilities or in order
to control these female powers. Similarly, cannibalistic serial ,illers view the female and
feminine body as vulnerable, ma,ing her.him an easy target for mutilation and consumption.
A
-hese same bodies carry se+uali2ed power that serial ,illers desire for themselves. )n both cases,
the female body is easily ob>ectified so that her specifically feminine body parts, such as the
breasts and buttoc,s, are consumed with little 7uestioning from academics as to why this seems
to be the case. )n the following paragraphs, ) provide three e+amples of cannibalism from
different historical periods that describe how female bodies have been ob>ectified and consumed.
-hrough ob>ectification these bodies are most often viewed as something to be possessed and so
are consumed because of their ability to perform powerful roles e.g., reproduction,
transcendence from the wea, body, and se+uality( that the consumers most often desire.
Cannibalistic Tribes
Some of the earliest cannibals include early tribes; they mostly ate their rivals and
neighbors, and have often been described as primitive and even barbaric, despite
cannibalisms widespread occurrence across the world. Most primitive tribes engaged in
cannibalism for ritualistic.religious reasons involving myth and tradition
'
. Cowever, these
rituals often involve issues of power and control, as well as se+uality. 1or e+ample, the <essa
chiefs of Central 0frica ;always consume certain female parts to better perform their marital
obligations, as do the )sabel of the Solomon )slands and the Dissan a tribe on the Solomon
)slands, who also discard the male genitalia as useless( 0s,enasy "##4% ""$(. -his act in itself
is gendered by the simple fact that the female parts are associated with characteristics historically
attributed to females and femininity, so that the mere eating of female parts allows the chief to be
better at marital obligations, which ) ta,e to mean se+ and reproduction; the female parts thus
have particularly value for this tribe. )n addition, these female bodies hold a certain power that
allows all those who consume these bodies to obtain se+ual power for their own use and control.
'
0fter briefly describing the different tribes that prefer eating female flesh to male flesh, 0s,enasy "##4( states, it
seems that the consensus went something li,e this% women and children are better than men; blac,s are better than
whitesFand in general the young are tastier than the old "'"(. 0nd perhaps an even better claim would be that
womens breasts were preferred over other forms of human flesh.
G
Dot only have female bodies been consumed to obtain their power, but they have also
been specifically avoided in order to control the negative characteristics associated with female
bodies. -he !imin=Hus,usmin tribes of /apua Dew Euinea believe that males and females have
both male and female body parts. -he cannibalistic consumption of male parts of either male or
female corpses ?consisting of muscle and bone marrow@ is believed to strengthen the hard,
strong, internal, ritually significant ;male anatomy of either men or women /oole "#&'% #(.
-o eat female parts flesh and fat(, however, the consumer ris,s wea,ening his.her male
anatomy and thus ris,s wea,ening the body. /oole claims that !imin=Hus,usmin warriors very
rarely eat female parts of slain men because they do not value the ritual strength of the bodily
substance of these beings under most circumstances ""(. )n addition, male sorcerers consume
both male and female substances, but they transform female substances into male substances in
order to ensure the efficacy of ritual endeavors, fertility, propagation, and growth as they affect
both humans and ritually significant crops and game "4(. -hese images that largely help create
norms for cannibalism within the tribe seem to depict the theoretical female body as wea, and
undesirable in certain respects, e+cept that males in the tribe also have female substances that
gain value once the males ta,e control of these substances. -he lived e+perience of the female
body, however, reveals that females are valued in this tribe for their procreative powers. -his is
evident in the second part of the pandanus rite.
-he second part of the pandanus rite involves the capture and consumption of a female
victim. -he female substance of this victim is eaten raw versus the coo,ed male victim in the
first part of the rite( in order to destroy her malevolent female substance. -he men consuming
the victim were re7uired to consume her female parts in guise as sorcerers and subse7uently
consume the male substance of wild boars and her body. -he female ritual elders consumed the
6
victims ritually purified uterus and vagina in order to gain the victims physical strength; since
the female ritual elders were viewed as androgynous, their powers prevailed over the victims
and did not re7uire male substance to decontaminate their bodies. Begardless of the view that
the body must be contaminated after consuming female flesh, the important aspect of this rite
involves the view that the victims uterus and vagina provide consumers with strength. -his
implies that the female body does have power3closely connected to reproductive performances
and capabilities. 0lso, those consuming the female body obtain this power because they also
inhabit female bodies; a man does not obtain the same power from consuming female
reproductive organs. -he role of the male is to consume the female body in order to control the
power of the female parts.
1or the !imin=Hus,usmin and the tribes described before, cannibalism is largely a male
act or right of passage. 0s,enasy "##4( states, 9n the Dew CebridesFthe penis and testicles
of fallen enemies are a favorite dish of the chiefs. 0lso%
-o gain courage and strength the Menado=0lfuren coo, a bouillon made of their
slain enemies heads; the )fe ma,e a stew of man, antelope, and some medicine;
as late as "&#A the Chames of Cochin=China dran, brandy mi+ed with the gall of
their dead opponents; in northern 0ustralia the eyes and chee,s are eaten; in the
middle and south of the continent ,idney fat is preferred; the :abondei of *ast
0frica choose the liver; the 9vambo of 0ngola coo, their enemies hearts; and so
on """(.
) thin, it is safe to assume that most, if not all, of these tribes warriors were male and their
opponents were also male warriors. -hus, historically, cannibalism, although sometimes enacted
by both males and females, has largely been a phenomenon done by males to other males.
Cowever, as described above, when females are eaten, they are eaten for specific reasons,
notably the control of their bodies and the powers that these bodies have for procreation.
Medieval European Cannibalism
&
-he female body in Medieval *urope also had power, although at this point the female
body had a different focus of power, namely the power for transcendence from the wea, body
to the strong soul. -he body was the locus of the sacred !ynum "##$% "&4(. -he more
saintly one was believed to be, the closer to Eod they became. Saints used their own bodies to
try and be closer to Christ by either eating the pus from sic, bodies or by having the sic,
eat.drin, from their own bodies. 0lso, those believing in and practicing Christianity in Medieval
*urope e+perienced the *ucharist as the real flesh and blood of Christ. *ucharistic reception
became symbolic cannibalism, in which those eating the *ucharist were granted access to the
power of the body being eaten !ynum "##$% "&A(. -he hope for many Christians eating the
*ucharist was to invo,e the spirit of Christ for ,nowledge and transcendence beyond flesh. 9ne,
Catherine !enincasa, even described her consumption of Christ as a child might suc,le from a
mothers breast. She e+plains, -hat day he showed me from far away his holy side, and ) cried
with great desire to place my lips on the most sacred wound !ell "#&A% '5(. !enincasa
identified the *ucharist with Christs body to such an e+tent that she ultimately ended up
restricting her diet to only the *ucharist in order to be closer to Christ. She claimed, :hen )
cannot receive the Sacrament, it satisfies me to be nearby and to see it; indeed, even to see a
priest who has touched the Sacrament consoles me greatly, so that ) lose all memory of food
$G(. -hese cases of holy anore+ia were relatively common at this time !ell "#&A(. Bather
than literally eating the human flesh of saints, such as was entertained by people li,e !ishop
Cugh of <incoln
4
, individuals consumed Christs flesh made bread and his blood made wine.
:hat ma,es this metaphorical cannibalism so interesting is the idea posited by !ynum "##$(
that Christs body was identified with the feminine in Medieval *urope.
4
Ce chewed off a bit from the bone of Mary Magdalen preserved at 1ecamp and defended himself to her outraged
supporters by claiming that if he could touch Christs body in the mass he could certainly chew the Magdalens arm
"&A(.
#
Iuring these times the female body was lin,ed more closely to Christs own body than
male bodies. :omens bodies e+perienced changes e.g., stigmata, levitation, sei2ures, and
trances( significantly more often than mens bodies, and these changes were attached to the
events in Christs life. -he fact that women menstruated monthly only testified to Medieval
*uropeans that these women were closer to Christ, since he bled on the cross. :omen mystics
often simply became the flesh of Christ, because their flesh could do what his could do% bleed,
feed, die and give life to others !ynum $$$(. )t only ma,es sense, then, that womens bodies
would be sub>ect to being eaten li,e the body of Mary Magdalen. 0s suggested by !ishop Cugh
of <incoln, if Christs body can be eaten in *ucharist, and women are inherently closer to Christ
due to menstruation, then womens bodies can also be eaten to invo,e the spirit of Christ.
:omens bodies offer a means of access to the divine, although their social standing in
Medieval *urope was still beneath that of men because the body was inferior to soul
$'A=$'G(. -he body ages and decomposes while the soul associated with maleness( is
immortal. -he purpose of eating a female body and the *ucharist, beyond invo,ing Christs
spirit, would be important for gaining the power of this body to transcend the wea,er inhabited
body.
-his view of the body is much different from those of early cannibalistic tribes; the
Medieval *uropean female body has positive characteristics that allow the individual to consume
the metaphorical flesh of the *ucharist which has strong symbolic female meaning at this time(
without becoming contaminated or being associated with negative human characteristics.
Cowever, in both cases, the female body has a certain type of power to perform that the
consumers desire to obtain and control. Iespite the body of Christ being male, his body has
been described as most li,e a females body at the time because he bled li,e women and caused
"5
women to e+perience their bodies as one with his own. Jia holy anore+ia and other bodily
e+periences li,e stigmata and trances( the female body becomes wed to Christs body and while
living a docile life, the female body obtains the power re7uired for transcendence to
enlightenment. !ynum mentions that at the time mens and womens bodies were viewed as
functioning similarly, even though femininity was more closely associated with the body and
masculinity with the mind. Since Christ e+hibits both masculinity via the soul( and femininity
via the bleeding(, so to do the females that are associated with Christ. Consuming the *ucharist
for powers to transcend the wea, body seems strongly related to the consumption of female
substances described earlier and the consumption of female bodies that ) describe below.
Men and Women Who Eat (Mostly Women
5
Moving several centuries forward, similar patterns appear in the control and consumption
of female bodies by individuals mostly men( who are serial ,illers. 9ne of the earliest
0merican serial ,illers found to have eaten his victims was 0lbert 1ish during the "#$5s.
0ccording to !ell $556(, 1ish is classified as a se+ual cannibal because he claimed to have
e+perienced enormous se+ual pleasure when he imagined eating a person or when he actually
indulged his fantasies A(. 0lthough 1ish murdered several male and female children and
molested over one hundred in twenty=three states, he is best ,nown for his abduction and
consumption of ten=year=old Erace !udd. 1ish claims to have not molested Erace, rather he
stripped her na,edF cho,ed her to death, ?and@ then cut her in small pieces so ?he@ could ta,e
?her@ meat to ?his@ rooms !ardsley $556% #(. Ce consumed her buttoc,s and asserts in a letter
to her parents si+ years later, Cow sweet and tender her little ass was roasted in the oven #(.
A
0gain, ) focus on serial ,illers here because they presumably ,ill their victims for reasons other than necessity of
survival; also eating their victims for reasons power and control( that ) argue are largely influenced by gender
sociali2ation. 1or the purpose of this paper, ) use *ggers $55'( definition of serial murder that involves se+ual
attac,s and the resulting death of young women, men, or children, committed ?most often@ by a male ,iller who
tends to follow a distinct physical or psychological pattern 4(.
""
1ish also admitted to eating a young boy in similar fashion. ) believe, however, children both
male and female( become the victims of such atrocious acts largely because young male and
female children are viewed as more characteristically similar to women; male children
specifically have not yet had the full opportunity to claim their masculinities via interaction with
adult males and influence from mass media. 1ish therefore consumed both male and female
children in order to achieve se+ual satisfaction, but also to control these bodies and gain se+ual(
power from them, or their se+ual innocence.
G

-wo other se+ual cannibals, 0ndrei Chi,atilo
6
and *dward Eein, also murdered and
consumed mostly female victims for se+ual gratification. Chi,atilo admitted to having
butchered at least twenty=one women, twenty=one boys, and ten girls between "#6& and "##5
while Eein ,illed at least three people two of which were women(. Chi,atilo suffered from
impotency and would often mutilate and then consume the flesh of his victims, including the
breasts, genitalia and internal se+ organs, as well as other body parts in order to restore his
manhood, similar to the <essa chiefs described earlier !ell $556% A(. )nside of Eeins house,
police found%
chair seats made of human s,in, a bo+ of preserved female genitalia, another bo+
containing four womens noses, a belt made of nipples, a heart in a bag near the
stove, the crania from several s,ulls, intestines in the refrigerator, preserved death
mas,s ta,en off nine women, a female s,in vest complete with genitals, a face
and scalp with blac, hairF?one of his victims@ head between two mattresses, and
a pair of lips hanging from a string Bamsland $55G% AA(.
0lthough Eein did not ,ill all fifteen women from which he retrieved body parts3he instead
stole parts from the cemetery3he did eat parts of these women, as well as wear their s,in, to
achieve se+ual gratification. -he reason these cases are particularly interesting is that these men
G
)nterestingly, 1ish believed at some points in his psychosis that he was Christ or that Christ was spea,ing to him
and telling him to ,ill children.
6
-wo other individuals, Di,olai I2humagaliev and 0le+ei Su,letin along with his female lover, Madina
Sha,irova( from the former Soviet Knion ,illed and ate the body parts of seven women and several women
including an eleven=year=old girl, respectively 0s,enasy "##4% $56=$5&(.
"$
needed to first control these bodies by murdering and mutilating them, and then the men would
consume the body in order to achieve se+ual power and satisfaction. 0lso, these men chose
bodies that seem particularly vulnerable in society
&
, such as the stereotypical wea, female or
child body, or the 0frican 0merican child body that 1ish claims the police did not pay much
attention ?to@ when they were hurt or missing !ardsley $556% $5(. 0gain, these bodies were
theoretically wea,, but had a feminine power that the serial ,illers deeply desired.
Similarly, )ssei Sagawa shot and ,illed a Iutch friend, after which he cut up her body to
consume her breast and buttoc,s. 0lthough he is mostly associated with epicurean cannibalism,
he also relates his taste for flesh to his taste for beautiful bodies. Sagawa admits, ) still adore
the sight and the shape of young :estern women, particularly beautiful ones. ) was a premature
and unhealthy baby, ) am ugly and small, but ) indulge in fantasies about strong healthy bodies.
)m essentially a romantic 0s,enasy "##4% $54(. )t is crucial here to deconstruct this 7uote
from Sagawa, because his victims have been females and his discussion of strong bodies
directly relates to female bodies, as well as his own body that he viewed as less=than masculine.
!ecause he did hold this own view of his body as wea, and undesirable, it ma,es sense that he
might want to eat the bodies of those he viewed as much stronger. Sagawa had a se+ual
attraction to female bodies that he could rightly achieve se+ual gratification from via murder and
consumption. Ce also desired their beauty, a beauty that he did not find in male bodies. <i,e the
cannibalistic serial ,illers mentioned above, Sagawas acts on the female body are very much
gendered in that he specifically chose feminine victims and ate some of their mostly feminine
body parts e.g., breasts and buttoc,s(
#
. 0nd, despite his ac,nowledgement that he may be less=
&
*gger $55'( claims that Most victims of serial ,illers are persons who are vulnerable3those individuals who are
perceived as powerless or lac,ing in prestige by most of society 46(.
#
9ther serial ,illers ,now to eat womens breasts and buttoc,s include% Bobin Eecht and the Bipper Crew who
severed womens breasts, used them for se+ual gratification, and then consumed the breast; and 8oachim Hroll who
stoc,ed women and girls and ate their body parts, mostly cut from the buttoc,s Bamsland $556(.
"'
than=masculine, he was very aware of his need to be seen as a masculine man. Sagawa
surmised that being acutely self=conscious of his shortcomings might have fueled his obsession
with ;the perfect woman, so that if he couldnt have this woman se+ually, he could at least
consume her flesh for se+ual gratification Bamsland $556% "(. 9f his first victim, Bamsland
$556( claims, Ce found these Dordic women overpowering, and even as he claimed he loved
them, he wanted to posses and destroy them G(. 1or Sagawa, the idea was that female bodies
were overwhelming while living, but controllable when dismembered ala 0dams( and can then
be used to gain their power for seduction.
Most serial ,illers are split into those that ,ill for se+ual reasons, for reason of aggression
power and control(, or due to psychosis. -hose discussed above largely fit under the se+ual
category, since they generally achieve se+ual gratification from ,illing, mutilating, and even
consuming their victim. ) have also argued with all of these cases, however, that these serial
murderers consume their victims because they desire to control the victims bodies. -hese
,illers also largely wish to obtain the se+ual power from the victims bodies. <i,e the early
cannibalistic tribes that consume female flesh and female substance in order to control feminine
characteristics or improve their own marital obligations, these cannibalistic serial ,illers
choose their victims for these same reasons. )n essence, cannibalism becomes a practice of
masculinity in which males e+ert patriarchal( power over female bodies in order to obtain a
different ,ind of power the power of performance( from these bodies.
-wo e+ceptions to the male cannibalistic serial ,iller rule involve female cannibalistic
,illers who each had one victim. 9meima Delson and 0nna Limmerman ,illed, mutilated, and
consumed their victims. Delson stabbed her husband with scissors, cut him into pieces, and
coo,ed him. She testified to castrating her victim, s,inning his body, and coo,ing his ribs in
"4
barbecue sauce, although later in her testimony she denies having eaten the victim 0s,enasy
"##4% '#(. Limmerman also murdered her victim her boyfriend( and fro2e his body parts to
thaw and consume over time !ell $556% G(. Iespite these two instances of female cannibalism,
the phenomenon is largely done by and for men. )n addition, Delson and Limmerman each had
one male, partner victim versus the many female, non=partner victims murdered and consumed
by male cannibalistic ,illers. Most importantly, however, both Delson and Limmerman accused
their partners of abuse and admitted to murdering them out of anger, revenge, and self=defense.
Bather than wanting to obtain the victims power for their own use, ) believe the female serial
,illers merely wanted to ta,e the victims power to control away from those they consumed. )n
this sense, the female cannibals do not desire to have this power for their own use, rather to rid
their victims of the power over their own bodies and minds. 0ll of the cannibalistic male serial
,illers have other reasons for consuming their many victims, including wanting to posses their
victims, wanting to control them, and wanting to become a part of them similar to the symbolic
cannibalism in Medieval *urope(.
9ne of the most notorious cannibalistic serial ,illers in the Knited States murdered,
mutilated, and consumed mostly homose+ual, 0frican 0merican men and young boys. 8effrey
Iahmer chose each of his seventeen victims for their vulnerability in society. <i,e 0lbert 1ish,
Iahmer was very much aware that his victims status in society particularly as homose+uals(
would not re7uire much effort in luring them in to his car.house, which provided more time for
the control and the ,ill *gger $55'% "#5(. Iahmer did have se+ual intercourse with many of
his victims pre and post=death and also saved their body parts in plastic bags, barrels, free2ers,
and bo+es as trophies. )nvestigators found s,ulls, bones, rotting body parts, bloodstained soup
,ettles, and complete s,eletons in Iahmers apartment Bamsland $55G, "5A(. Ce even
"A
admitted to tenderi2ing and sautMing parts of the hearts, biceps and thigh muscles of several
victims out of curiosity <ester "##A% "6"(. Iespite being one of the few cannibalistic serial
,illers to choose male bodies for mutilation and consumption, ) thin, the fact that Iahmer
intentionally selected more vulnerable and femini2ed bodies for consumption indicated >ust how
gendered cannibalism really is, not only in the Knited States, but around the world. Most
importantly, Iahmer chose bodies that are most similar to female bodies without denying his
homose+ual desires. Iahmer even admitted in an interview with Iateline that he >ust wanted
to have the person under ?his@ complete control 0s,enasy "##4% $56(. Ce also mentioned to
police, My consuming lust was to e+perience their bodies. ) viewed them as ob>ects, as
strangers *gger $55'% "#A(. Jiewing his victims as ob>ects that can and should be controlled
allows Iahmer to consume the victims much li,e he would consume an animals flesh. *+cept
Iahmer was very much aware of his desire to possess these bodies that have socially been
deemed more feminine. Iahmer had two things wor,ing for him, then; these homose+ual male
bodies were viewed as more vulnerable in a society that privileges masculine bodies, but also
these bodies were desirable for the se+ual power that could be consumed.
Conclusion
-he view that female and feminine bodies are powerful in patriarchal societies is not a
widely accepted or documented argument. Since the time of /lato and 0ristotle when female
bodies were associated with passivity the female body has been viewed as less than desirable.
-he ob>ectification of these bodies allows people to view female bodies in this fashion; however,
when people li,e Iahmer, Sagawa, and even medieval priests and early cannibalistic tribes
"G
literally and metaphorically consume female.feminine flesh for the purposes of gaining the
se+ual power, power to transcend the wea, body, and reproductive power, the female body
challenges these very notions of undesirability.
9ne academic that seems to view cannibalism as a means for destroying the negative
characteristics associated with those consumed also ma,es a clear point of lin,ing power and
control to human flesh eating. /eggy Beeves Sanday "#&G( e+amines cannibalism in terms of
early tribes and warfare, in which the victim is cast as the living metaphor for animality, chaos,
and the powers of dar,ness3all those things people feel must be tamed, destroyed, or
assimilated in the interest of an orderly social life G(. 0lternately, cannibalism also occurs
because of the desire to obtain the positive powers associated with the victims body. Sanday
also states that cannibalism for many tribes is the ultimate act of domination that can be
enforced on the enemy. *nemy females are consumed during the second part of the !imin=
Hus,usmin pandanus rite in order to diminish her sorceress 7ualities or to improve the elders
se+ual powers. 0nd, for tribes such as the 02tec, consuming female and male individuals
allowed the male consumers to achieve divine power, much li,e *ucharistic consumption.
)nterestingly, Sanday "#&G( identifies male aggression against women as a significant
variable related to cannibalism in more comple+ societies
"5
. She states, Male aggression is a
reaction to stress as males see, to dominate controlling material forces by dominating the bodies
of women and female reproductive functions "'(. Cowever, this reaction to stress most often
occurs in societies that have a high investment in the idea that men have the power to re(create
3sperm is valued over the egg and the mind over the body. 0lso, in these societies the female
bodily substances such as menstrual blood and fertile fluids( are negatively encoded in order to
differentiate between male and female. -his encoding can be e+amined as far bac, as /lato and
"5
Sanday describes her definition of comple+ societies in her introduction.
"6
0ristotle3who saw the female reproductive system as a passive entity, or dirt that the seed
grows in. )n fact, when 0ristotle identified the female with matter.body and the male with
form.soul, he set the stage for the characteri2ation of females as passive, emotional, and
vulnerable and males as active, reasonable, and strong. Sanday suggests that when this
dichotomy occurs, the consciousness of the social other are e+perienced in terms of the
sub>ects dread of pollution by the bodily substances of others '6(. -hese others inevitably
are women with bodies that are feared by men who desire these powers for themselves. 1rom
this fear springs the desire to control and consume.possess the female bodys power.
Sanday argues that individuals and tribes see, to consume positively encoded substances,
namely male substances. Cowever, males also see, to consume negatively encoded substances
read, female substances( in order to control them. :hether womens bodies and female
substances were eaten by cannibalistic tribes, medieval priests, or cannibalistic serial ,illers, they
have largely been eaten by men and for men. 1emale bodies have the se+ual, reproductive and
transcendental power that men have desired for centuries; the most e+treme way men have seen
fit to ac7uire these powers is via the literal and metaphorical consumption of the female body.
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"#