From Rite to Hunger: Anthropophagy in Two Chilean Chronicles of the Sixteenth Century

Abstract

The topic of the anthropophagy in colonial America today is usually marked by controversy. Far from the ideological typecasting, colonial studies should deal with phenomena such as this and to try to explain its motivations. This facilitates the understanding of several aspects of the Conquest and of the behavior displayed by the conquered other. We know from Columbus's voyages, through chroniclers and travelers, of the existance of actual or figurative cannibals throughout the continent. It is a practice that can be mainly attributed to aboriginals, but also manifests itself among the Europeans. The present work analyzes this phenomena, honing in on two 16th century Chilean chronicles: those of Jeronimo de Vivar (1558) and Alonso de Gongora Marmolejo (1575), in which one can appreciate how aboriginal anthropophagic practices appear to be essentially linked to the war. These practices are not limited to ritual connotations, but also motivated by hunger and despair.