Good Jews Don’t: Historical and Philosophical Constructions of Idolatry

Abstract

Naomi Janowitz G O OD J E WS D ON ’ T : H I S TO R I C A L A N D PH I LOS OPH IC A L C O N S T RUC T I O N S O F I D O L AT RY The first question British sailors asked the indigenous people they encoun- tered in Polynesia was, “Are you cannibals?” While the question would seem to be about the natives, it also reveals quite a bit about British interests. Gananath Obeyesekere has masterfully analyzed for us why the British were obsessed with “other people’s” cannibalistic tendencies. A small but famous set of stories circulated about British sailors who resorted to cannibalism in dire straits. Thus the question of whether or not the British behavior was morally acceptable was explored via an investiga- tion of “primitive” behavior. A universal human fear and fascination with the possibility that somewhere in the world human monsters consume human flesh also contributed to the British obsession. Obeyesekere con- cludes, “Polynesian cannibalism is constructed out of an extremely com- plex dialogue between Europeans and Polynesians, a dialogue that makes sense in relation to the history of contact and unequal power relations and the cultural values, fantasies and the common dark humanity they both share.” 1 The natives’ answers were part of this delicately constructed dialogue. Adopting the outsider’s view of themselves accrued a perverse power to Gananath Obeyesekere, “ ‘British Cannibals’: Contemplation of an Event in the Death and Resurrection of James Cook, Explorer,” Critical Inquiry 18 (1992): 650. c 2007 by The University of Chicago Press. All rights reserved.