The logic of Hua mortuary cannibalism is the main subject of this chapter. This logic provides the basis for my analysis of Gimi mortuary cannibalism and Melpa mortuary practices in which pig flesh is substituted for human flesh. These examples establish the relevance of maternal and intrauterine imagery for comprehending the meaning of cannibal practice. I suggest that the primordial pull of the maternal, the unitary symbol from which all opposites emanate, establishes the moods and motivations that make Hua and Gimi cannibalism inevitable. For both groups, cannibalism is part of a system of symbols by means of which individual and social identity are defined and biological and social reproduction ensured.

The concerns evident in Hua ontology may be tied to protein deficiency and the delayed rates of growth, relative to females, that this deficiency produces in males. The indivisibility of mother and child is also evident in Gimi ontology; however, male control of pig flesh extricates men from the cycle of cannibalism displayed by women alone.