Cannibalism: should it be condemned in survival situations? i.e if you were lost at sea and starving would you kill and eat your fellow sailor?
I am doing an essay on laws surrounding cannibalism and I need people's opinions on if they think it should be condemned and if so to what extent?
by 
lolafeb9
ANSWERS: 4
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No. I would not kill unless it was self defense. But I might eat them if they died on their own under those circumstances.
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The main two issues you have are rationality vs survivability. Most people in survival situations are not rational - hence "condemning" means very little. Thus it's not about being "legal" but being engaged enough to interact with the people. Or to make it simpler - the argument is more about who the group can afford to lose via cannibalism. Thus eating the "sailor" in the ship full of teens would be rather stupid as no teens have his experience or skill to steer and maintain the ship Survivability on the other hand is something only certain people can manage. It's the sort of people who go on to lead and do greater things. Its the near opposite of rationality as it's about who the group CAN afford to lose.
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Archie Bunker I agree for the most part. But in many instances, rationality goes out the window as panic and fear sink in. They may pick the sailor because his thighs are thicker than everyone else. Or because one guy says that he's plotting on everyone else, so mob mentality takes over and they kill and eat the sailor before he can do the same.
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First off, murder is never acceptable. Ok, now that that point is settled, although it is taboo in almost every modern culture, there are several cultures who have resorted to this other practice during desperate times. During the Holodomor, it was said that the only people to survive were those who resorted to cannibalism. Those who were altruistic perished first - by giving their food to others, they would not have enough for themselves. After the altruists starved, the next to die were those who refused to eat them. Then, when the famine was over, the last to die were those who were indiscreet about what they had done in order to survive, because the practice was punishable by death.
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Archie Bunker
There are many cases of cannibalism for survival. Some are prosecuted regardless of the reason, and some are not. Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 survivors resorted to cannibalism to survive, and there are not a lot of people who condemn that.
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I surely wouldn't want to wait around until he starts thinking the same thing of me. But, there are numerous examples where men lost at sea didn't start killing and eating each other.
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