The Price of Cannibalism

   
     There is a long tradition among many warrior societies that place a high value on the practice of cannibalism.  In some of the cultures, the warrior believed that he might absorb his enemy's strength by consuming a portion of the flesh.  The Aztec knights of the Jaguar and Eagle may have approached this a little differently by wearing the enemy's skin for a duration of time, perhaps for a similar effect.

Aztec Wearing Human Skin

     In the area of folklore, cannibalism has a frequent sinister connection to the legend of the Wendigo.  This tradition, mostly centered on Native American tribes of Canada and the North East portion of what would be the United States.  In some versions of the lore, an evil spirit can take claim of an individual that indulges in characteristics of extreme greed and cruelty.  As the spirit takes control, the person hungers for human flesh, often taking on an inhuman aspect of its own.  In some of the tales, the most frequent cause for a person to become a Wendigo is when they are driven to cannibalism during a time of famine or a harsh winter.  Once the deed is done, the person abandons the last thread of civilization and becomes the monster that craves further victims.

     There has been some speculation that the character Gollum in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-Earth is essentially a variation of the Wendigo.  In popular culture, the Wendigo shows up frequently, such as in the television series Supernatural.  I keep waiting to hear of a story that combines the Donner Party of 1846-47 stranded in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with the Wendigo myth.  

     Among the best works of literature that develops the general folklore of the Wendigo is Algernon Blackwood's 1910 Novella the Wendigo. 
 

Algernon Blackwood

This excellent work is available free at the following link through the Gutenberg project:

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/10897/10897-h/10897-h.htm