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The final episode (Part 3)
Part 3 explores 2 themes we haven’t touched on yet- Identity confusion, and inferiority. You might not think that not knowing or feeling good about who you are could possibly be a motive for cannibalism. But as it turns out, people sometimes eat other people (at least in part) because their core identity is in a freefall.In this week’s episode, Professor Michael Drane completes Part 3 of his series on ‘7 Reasons for Cannibals.’ He reviews the previous ingredients before diving into identity confusion, inferiority, and psychosis.
Reason #6: Identity Confusion
In the 1950s in Plainfield, Wisconsin- an American serial killer, who would one day be considered the “world’s strangest serial killer” was committing unspeakable acts of necrophilia, murder, grave digging, and likely, cannibalism. His actions would resonate into the future for decades as far as lasting folklore goes he is infamous. His gruesome crimes gained worldwide notoriety and inspired numerous books and horror films. Gein is popular for his Oedipus complex that he had with his mother. It is this relationship that inspired numerous books and movies, notably three of the most influential horror/thriller films ever made. Countless movies, books, and podcasts have covered the murders of Ed Gein, but few have explored the impact he made on us as a culture.
Gein Inspired Psycho (1960), directed by Alfred Hitchcock, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), & The Silence of the Lambs(1991)
All of these characters are depicted as psychopaths who, in some way or another, used human skin to disguise themselves
Psycho (1960), directed by Alfred Hitchcock and based on Robert Bloch’s powerful 1959 book. The antagonist Norman Bates was inspired by Gein’s identity confusion, and Oedipus complex for his mother. Norman Bates was a psychopath who dresses up as his own mother, keeps his mother’s dead body in the basement, and assumes her identity. After she dies, Gein keeps his mother’s body. And dresses up in female anatomy using female parts
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) features the main villain known as Leatherface, who was likely inspired by Gein’s love for wearing a skin-face mask. Leatherface isn’t much like Gein in personality, more like a perversion of Gein’s personality. Something hyped up for Hollywood.
The Silence of the Lambs(1991) features Hannibal Lector, America’s favorite cannibal. Though the character Hannibal Lector is said to be inspired by Ed Gein, the only thing these two have in common is they’re both cannibals and murderers. Where Lector is brilliant, charming, and sophisticated, Gein is average intelligence (at best), socially awkward, and lives in a dilapidated house on a farm in Wisconsin
Reason #7: Inferiority
Some cannibals consume humans because they feel it will help them overcome their low self-image. Japanese national Issei Sagawa invited his classmate, 25-year-old Renée Hartevelt, to his apartment. Sagawa told her he wanted to study poetry for a school assignment. But was a ruse attack, one he had planned for and fantasized about- The murder and cannibalism of Renee Hartavelt. The first and last murder Sagawa would ever commit. Sagawa was captivated by the beauty of Renee Hartevelt. He would watch her in class, fixated on her youth, how healthy & beautiful she was. Sagawa admired Hartevelt’s beauty, maybe even resented it. Throughout his life, Sagawa considered himself weak, ugly, and small (4-foot-9) & he saw Hartevelt as superior to him- where she was beautiful, he was a beast. Sagawa gets it in his mind that if he ate Renee Hartevelt, he would absorb her beauty, maybe even making himself more beautiful in the process. At first, this seems like a delusional thing to say. But watching interviews with Sagawa, and everything I’ve researched, his belief that he would absorb her beauty was closer to spiritual belief or partial delusion. There is no evidence that Renee Hartevelt gave any sign of struggle when she was murdered. Sagawa says she was reading poetry at a desk when he shot her in the back of the neck with a rifle. You would normally think of cannibals as feeling intense pleasure from beholding the sight of the victim they were about to eat. But Sagawa is not your average cannibal. In all accounts, Saga was not really the bloodthirsty psychopathic type. Sagawa is so squeamish, he faints after shooting her. It’s as if after all that fantasizing about killing her, part of him was surprised he actually went through with it. Sagawa said when he woke up, he realized he actually had carried out the murder and felt no choice but to carry out the rest of the fantasy.
This episode is reserved exclusively for our Stalkers of the podcast, so get the full episode HERE
What we’ve covered so far in parts 1 & 2
The most common reasons for cannibalism are cannibalism for survival and cannibalism because it is part of a person’s culture.
Professor Drane has identified other major themes for why people eat other people. It’s important to know that cannibals will not easily fit into these categories. It’s better to look at these 7 motives as ingredients, each combination of these 7 ‘ingredients’ produces a specific flavor of cannibal:
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Reason #1: Psychopathic Power & Thrill
Power and thrill are some of the most common motives for killers, so common that Power/Thrill is an official motive category used by the FBI. A good example of someone who cannibalized, for this reason, is Doragnel Vargas. In Venezuela during the 1990s, police begin investigating the mysterious disappearance of several people disappearing near a local bridge. Near that bridge was a bar. Locals would drink at this bar, then wander to the nearby bridge to sleep it off. This is where Cannibal Dorancel Vargas would strike. In 1999, police in San Cristobal, Venezuela find a carnival of body parts in Varga’s home- fresh human entrails & at least 10 skulls. Ultimately, Vargas would be accused of killing and eating at least 20 men. Whereas most killers readily boast about their murders, Vargas originally denies killing his victims, instead claiming that the bodies were given to him. (Likely psychotic ideation or he was toying with police, or a partial delusion- so used to lying that he actually convinced himself)
Reason #2: Grief, Loss, & Trauma
The first motive for cannibalism is truly unique, and one that should not be confused with psychopathic behavior. This case shows us that it is possible to cannibalize someone you love, because you are grieving their loss. You are suffering from grief and trauma. And have truly lost your way.
My Strange Addiction season 2, episode 8 features the case of Cassie- an otherwise normal person who’s husband suddenly dies of a severe asthma attack. As Cassie becomes consumed by grief, she begins to consume her dead husband.
Reason #3: Sexual Sadism
Some Cannibals get a sexual high from torturing and eating other people. It’s the suffering itself that turns them on. History gives many infamous examples of this type of pathology, such as Albert Fish a.k.a “The Gray Man”, “The Werewolf of Wysteria”, “The Brooklyn Vampire”, “The Moon Maniac”, & “The Boogey Man”. Fish was an American serial killer, child rapist, and cannibal. Fish is widely considered the Prototype of American Psychopathic Cannibals, and America’s most notorious & revolting pedophile, child serial killer, & cannibal in American History. Given his reputation, you would be forgiven if you are imagining a blood-thirsty, terrifying monster. But in reality, Fish was thin and frail, soft, & inconspicuous. Fish looked so unassuming that he easily went unnoticed, a face that blended in with the crowd- which helped him get away with his horrendous acts for as long as he did. Throughout his life, Fish confessed to molesting, torturing, murdering, & eating more than 100 children (some put this number closer to 400). Once caught, Fish bragged that he killed or ate a child in every state in the union— Just before being put to death by the electric chair in 1936, Fish proclaimed- “Going to the electric chair will be the supreme thrill of my life”
Reason #4: Psychopathic Narcissism
Some Cannibals kill & consume because it’s a signal to the world that they are superior to others. A great example of this type of cannibal is Luka Magnotta. At 24 years old, Magnotta was an aspiring model. Magnotta gained the visceral hatred of animal rights activists and international notoriety after posting videos online of him suffocating kittens and torturing animals. Presumably loving the attention he is getting from these videos, Magnotta ups the ante when he releases a video of the murder of Jun Lin, a recent romantic interest of his. Magnotta lured Jun Lin to his apartment under the guise of a sexual encounter, but then stabbed him to death, dismembered, & cannibalized, Jun Lin. After the murder, Magnotta mails Lin’s dismembered hands & feet to elementary schools & the offices of a Canadian federal political party. Just like the animals he murdered, Magnotta releases a video of Jun Lin’s murder online, sparking an international manhunt for his capture. Though he went on the run, In June 2012, Magnotta was located and arrested in a Berlin internet cafe while googling himself on the internet. A very appropriate way for someone so obsessed with himself to be captured. In the end, Magnotta couldn’t resist checking in on his own celebrity. His sense of self-importance was his downfall. The jury deliberates for 8 days, and eventually convicts Magnotta of first-degree murder in 2014.
Reason #5: Psychosis or Altered State of Consciousness
Some cannibals eat humans because they are quite literally out of their minds, whether it be induced by drugs or mental illness. An example of this type of cannibal is Rudy Eugene a.k.a “The Causeway Cannibal” or “The Miami Zombie. Rudy Eugene was reportedly high on bath salts while strippi9ng naked on a Miami street. When Eugene bumped into local homeless man Ronald Poppo, Eugene accused Poppo of “stealing his bible”. Eugene beat Poppo unconscious and began eating his face, blinding him in both eyes. Even when police ordered him to stop, Eugene growled at them and continued eating Poppo until he was shot by police. Most people assume that all cannibals are psychopaths, but there are other reasons for cannibalism. After widespread speculations about Mr. Eugene being high on bath salts, toxicology reports would later find no drugs in his system at the time of the attack. This man may have been psychotic or in an altered state, but if so, it wasn’t induced by drugs.
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Unpopular Culture Podcast is a psychology podcast hosted by Professor & Psychotherapist Michael Drane. With help from professionals in different fields, he seeks to shine light into the broken underbelly of society.
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Ep: 264 - 7 Reasons for Cannibals: Part 3- The Psychology of Cannibalism (Preview) This is Part 3 of his series on ‘7 Reasons for Cannibals.’ We review the previous ingredients before diving into identity confusion, inferiority, and psychosis.
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