Cannibals,Bons Sauvages,and Tasty White Men: Models of Alterity in the Encounter of South American Tupi and Europeans

Abstract

Around 1550, Europeans came into close contact with Amerindians of the Brazilian coast. This paper explores in which way the Tupi and the Europeans perceived each other and how this experience of alterity was translated into culturally informed models of otherness. While the Europeans-emphasised contrasts between their culture and the Tupi, describing indigenous anthropophagous customs, the Tupi seemed to accept the Europeans at a level of parity, attempting to include them into their ritual life. European authors depicted the Tupi as simple and natural people, presenting them as an antithesis to European 'decadence'. Thus, South American cannibals became teachers of the White Men.