Final Paragraph

Exocannibalism and endocannibalism become so concentrated in a group of people that they promote human prion disease. Because these two types of cannibalism cause the brain eating disease Kuru, these two types of cannibalism cannot be perpetuated. Survival cannibalism, however, in life-or-death situations could be necessary and should be accepted. It is a one-time event and lacks prion mutation concentration; thus, it promotes no human prion disease. Therefore, there are no physical consequences for survival cannibalism.
However, when judging these three types morally, exocannibalism should be the most immoral. This type of cannibalism was used to desecrate the body and spirit of the prisoner of war. It was used to trap the victim’s soul; therefore this type was only used for malicious and devious purposes. It should only be considered as immoral. On the other hand, endocannibalism was used to love, cherish, and honor a dead family member. The ultimately goal of endocannibalistic people was benign, and if it were not for the deadly disease Kuru, this cannibalism could well be acceptable. Survival cannibalism should be seen as a last resort. Western society should take pity on those who are forced to be this type of cannibal.
Much like the Andes survivors of the crash in the Andes Mountain, also in the 1970’s, Vietnam Veterans returned to the United States and were treated like second class citizens. Both groups experienced stigmatization and great anxiety because they acted in ways that should have been excusable. Under the circumstances both groups really had not other choice to act in the way that they did. With those in the Andes crash, they had to surivive by eating the flesh of other people. The survival instinct kicked in and overrode all other emotions or feelings, including disgust. In the case of the Vietnam Veterans, the American government forced them to fight in highly unsupported war by the American people (and possibly the troops themselves). The Veterans had no other choice due to the draft system. In both cases, because of the stigmatization that the media and American society placed on them, they developed post-traumatic stress disorder and other disorders that affected their dissonance and feelings of humanity.
Because of these accounts, Americans should become more understanding to those who must become cannibals in order to survive. In order for the evolution of American society to continue, society must look objectively at an entire situation that turned someone into a cannibal, and judge it on the lines of the criteria outlined in this essay. If an act of cannibalism is moral, and it promotes no human prion disease, that it should be treated delicately and understanding and compassion should be the evoked emotion. Ultimately, the Andes crash survivors were made out to be monsters, but society has learned from its mistakes of disloyalty and misunderstanding and will react differently in the future.