This Horrid Practice
Encyclopedia
This Horrid Practice: The Myth and Reality of Traditional Maori Cannibalism is a 2008 non-fiction book by New Zealand
historian Paul Moon
. The book is a comprehensive survey of the history of cannibalism
among the Māori of New Zealand. It was the first published academic survey of Māori cannibalism.
Shortly after the book appeared, it was featured in numerous news reports and on the New Zealand television programme 60 Minutes
. The publication of This Horrid Practice was controversial because of the book's determination that cannibalism was widespread among New Zealand Māori until the mid-19th century. Māori cannibalism is a sensitive topic in New Zealand, and Moon anticipated that the book would be negatively received by some. The book prompted an anonymous but formal complaint to the New Zealand Human Rights Commission
, arguing that it "describes the whole of Maori society as violent and dangerous. This is a clearly racist view claiming a whole ethnic group has these traits."
One of Moon's critics, Margaret Mutu
, acknowledged that cannibalism was widespread throughout New Zealand but argued that Moon, as a Pākehā
, "did not understand the history of cannibalism and it was 'very, very hard for a Pakeha to get it right on these things'".
Moon responded to the controversy by writing an editorial in the New Zealand Herald. He stated that Mutu had "condemned me and announced to the media that I did not understand the history of cannibalism, although she admitted to not having read even a single sentence of the book." Moon also charged his critics with attempted censorship and name-calling.
In one news report, Moon commented:
The title of the book is drawn from the 16 January 1770 journal entry of Captain James Cook, who, in describing acts of Māori cannibalism, stated "though stronger evidence of this horrid practice prevailing among the inhabitants of this coast will scarcely be required, we have still stronger to give."
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
historian Paul Moon
Paul Moon
Paul Moon is a New Zealand historian and a professor at the Auckland University of Technology. He is a prolific writer of New Zealand history and biography, specialising in Māori history, the Treaty of Waitangi and the early period of Crown rule....
. The book is a comprehensive survey of the history of cannibalism
Cannibalism
Cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh of other human beings. It is also called anthropophagy...
among the Māori of New Zealand. It was the first published academic survey of Māori cannibalism.
Shortly after the book appeared, it was featured in numerous news reports and on the New Zealand television programme 60 Minutes
60 Minutes (New Zealand)
60 Minutes is the name of a television newsmagazine show currently broadcast in New Zealand on TV3. The show began in New Zealand in 1989 based on an American programme by the same name....
. The publication of This Horrid Practice was controversial because of the book's determination that cannibalism was widespread among New Zealand Māori until the mid-19th century. Māori cannibalism is a sensitive topic in New Zealand, and Moon anticipated that the book would be negatively received by some. The book prompted an anonymous but formal complaint to the New Zealand Human Rights Commission
New Zealand Human Rights Commission
The Human Rights Commission is the national human rights institution in New Zealand. It is funded through the Ministry of Justice, but operates independently of the New Zealand Government...
, arguing that it "describes the whole of Maori society as violent and dangerous. This is a clearly racist view claiming a whole ethnic group has these traits."
One of Moon's critics, Margaret Mutu
Margaret Mutu
Professor Margaret Shirley Mutu is a Ngāti Kahu activist, leader and academic from Auckland, New Zealand. Her iwi are Ngāti Kahu, Te Rarawa and Ngāti Whātua....
, acknowledged that cannibalism was widespread throughout New Zealand but argued that Moon, as a Pākehā
Pakeha
Pākehā is a Māori language word for New Zealanders who are "of European descent". They are mostly descended from British and to a lesser extent Irish settlers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, although some Pākehā have Dutch, Scandinavian, German, Yugoslav or other ancestry...
, "did not understand the history of cannibalism and it was 'very, very hard for a Pakeha to get it right on these things'".
Moon responded to the controversy by writing an editorial in the New Zealand Herald. He stated that Mutu had "condemned me and announced to the media that I did not understand the history of cannibalism, although she admitted to not having read even a single sentence of the book." Moon also charged his critics with attempted censorship and name-calling.
In one news report, Moon commented:
What amazes me is that the critics who say I don’t understand the mechanisations of this practice often have not even read the book. Nor do they have evidence to the contrary. While they may not like its content, they can’t deny historical fact. And trying to censor this book is denying the past.
The title of the book is drawn from the 16 January 1770 journal entry of Captain James Cook, who, in describing acts of Māori cannibalism, stated "though stronger evidence of this horrid practice prevailing among the inhabitants of this coast will scarcely be required, we have still stronger to give."
External links
- This Horrid Practice, 95bFM interview with Moon