This master's thesis presents cannibalism as it is seen through the optics of criminal law. Cannibalism, which is perceived as a serious violation of fundamental moral values in the majority of world cultures, is accompanied on the path from its beginnings, which led to a firm position among informal social norms, to the important question of criminalization purposes and causes in modern criminal justice systems. The latter are undoubtedly closely connected to social morality, yet legal moralism has been widely criticized as an inadequate basis of criminalization.
A considerable amount of this master’s thesis is dedicated to the confrontation of cannibals and certain fundamental constructs of criminal law, such as necessity and victim’s consent. Necessity is faced with the problem of equal rights collision, while the construct of victim's consent is challenged by the question of validity of consent, when it comes to actions which attack society’s elementary values. The cannibal seems to pose a unique and versatile challenge to criminal law. He is the cause of numerous philosophical discussions and at the same time he presents a test for judicial interpretation and flexibility of criminal laws, as he brings with him the weight of public opinion, but is also a reminder of moral variability.
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