Drawing Conclusions

Thus far…

This semester, we’ve delved into the evidence and ethics of deciding Cannibalism in the American Southwest. There are many different archeological findings that could point to evidence of human cannibalism. These evidences are not conclusive though, and many have other possible explanations. Besides the evidence not being conclusive, it is hard to find especially with ethical issues behind the topic.

The majority of conflict behind cannibalism in the American southwest is that ethics. With the preempted ideas behind cannibalism, most societies feel as though their ancestors and past are being put down. Societies that are suggested of cannibalism could be seen as ‘primitive’ and ‘savages’, which leads to many defending their pasts and not releasing information they may know. Also, because of the damages due to the bodies and artifacts found, societies ask that their ancestral lands and artifacts be saved and protected. This makes it even more difficult to further research the sites.

Even with the restraints on research, there are some case site cases that have plausible evidence of human cannibalism. With the few very probable cases, there leaves room for possible theories of cannibalism. But even with these possibilities of cannibalism, what does this really mean for archeologists?

For our group…

Our group did a great deal of analysis of scholarly research and got to know our topic very well. We read articles, watched videos, and so we made our own educated evaluations of the conflict. We all agreed there was convincing evidence for cannibalism and that we believed there was. But the conflict does not just end here. What our group really found interesting was the theories as to why. Why did it occur? What was the reasoning behind the cannibalism and what events led to it. Was it acts of sacrifice? Or perhaps was it of means of survival from starvation? Could enemies have come in and inflicted it upon the society? Or maybe it was a means of disposing of enemies?

The way to finally understanding what really occurred is not defined. We may someday find out, but to this day, we do not know. The answer as the why is the real answer we should really be looking for. And the truth is we may never know; this is what really leaves us at the edge of our seats.  

Well, that wraps up our semester. Thanks for reading and learning as we do. As always, feel free to comment.

So in final remarks, we wish to leave you with the great topic of Southwest Cannibalism to ponder as well as one question; what do you think of the evidence for Cannibalism in the American Southwest?