Montaigne

In” Of Cannibals”, French writer Michel Eyquem de Montaigne argues that what appears to be barbaric to us may only appear so because the culture in question is not our own. Montaigne quotes Roman playwright Terence when he says “I am a man, I consider nothing human to be alien to me” (Puchner, 1649). Barbarism is defined by the writer as “whatever is not one’s own practice”. In his examination of tribal society, Montaigne demonstrates what may be considered barbaric is not at all when the reason for the actions are considered.

Montaigne describes the tribal society of cannibals as “alive and vigorous their genuine, their most useful and natural, virtues and properties, which we have debased in the latter in adapting them to gratify our corrupted case” (Montaigne, 1653). In the western world, society is so far removed from nature that logic is twisted to fit our own ideas of what is acceptable. The tribal society is still uncorrupted and living how God intended, with virtue, truth and logic. In discussing this concept, Montaigne makes the point “These nations, then, seem to me barbarous in this sense that they have been fashioned very little by the human mind, and are still very close to their original naturalness. The laws of nature still rule them.”(Montaigne, 1654). Although these tribal practices are distained in our western world, they make perfect sense in this natural environment of the tribes.

Montaigne’s definition of barbarity brings to mind a current issue in western news today, the Syrian “Cannibal”. The United States has agreed to arm resistance groups in Syria in their attempt to overthrow their oppressor, President Bashar al-Assad. A video has been posted and disseminated to the world press of a Syrian rebel commander biting into the lung of a previously deceased soldier loyal to President al-Assad. Westerners are in an uproar of this supposed act of cannibalism. On further examination, it appears possible that this Syrian rebel leader is behaving much the same as the tribal warriors as described in “Of Cannibals”. According to the rebels, this opposition soldier was convicted of war atrocities such as rape and murder of women and children. This is much the same logic the tribal society had with their prisoners that were killed quickly and eaten later for committing atrocities on their society. Montaigne declares “I think there is more barbarity in eating a man alive than in eating him dead. So we may well call these people barbarians, in respect to the rules of reason, but not in respect to ourselves, who surpass them in every kind of barbarity” (Montaigne, 1657).

Works Cited:

Montaigne. “Of Cannibals”. The Norton Anthology of World Literature, Beginnings to 1650.

    Ed. Martin Puchner. Vol. 1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2013. 1650-1665. Print.