The question we will address in this course is not so much whether cannibalism as a practice really existed (or still exists), but the fascination this topic has exerted on people?s minds. The purpose of the course is twofold: first, to introduce the student to the study of the textual and iconographic representations of American ?cannibalism? from the 16th century until the present: chronicles, literature, legal discourses on the one hand, and map sheets, single drawings, book illustrations and films on the other.