'Dinner With the Cannibal' Analysis + Response

Poem

That he would be a man of special tastes

His mordant wit and intellect proclaimed him bon vivant I suppose I was bedazzled by it all

The chandelier, the red roses like stigmata

Too flattered by the invitation

To notice that the table was laid only for hors d'oeuvres

It was understood of course that I was privileged to be there

With him in dinner jacket and black bow tie

The fact that he drank claret should have made me realize

That he liked his meat rare yet, even so

I was take aback when, all of a sudden

he reached across the table to snap off both my legs

As if I was a crisp brown Maori-bread man

Saying, "You won't need these, will you"

With him in dinner jacket and black bow tie

The fact that he drank claret should have made me realize

That he liked his meat rare yet, even so

I was take aback when, all of a sudden

he reached across the table to snap off both my legs

As if I was a crisp brown Maori-bread man

Saying, "You won't need these, will you"

The snap and wrench of bone from socket

Sounded louder than I expected, but, the agony was slight

(I've always had a high pain threshold)

What alarmed me more was that my silk trousers were forever ruined

"After all," he said, "a landless man may just as well be limbless"

"And just in case," he added, breaking both my arms,

"This will prevent any further throwing of wet black T-shirts

At Her Majesty"

What could I do? I watched him

Suck the marrow of my bones and tear the meat

That once had made me mobile

I was pleased his manners were impeccable

Not one sweet morsel of me dropped

From his lips - I loved the way

He cracked my toes and fingers open with his teeth

To work the fine gristle for its flavour

He was a gourmet of impeccable sophistication

"That was much better than Aboriginal or Red Indian"

He said, "And I have never liked the taste of Hindu or Pakistani

Too much curry in their diet taints the flesh

You are a repast quite delicious

Almost like Samoan, less fatty than Tongan"

So saying, he proceeded to the main course -

This was my stomach, heart and ribs

Not exactly in that order, for I could not see

What he ate first as he leant forward

With silver knife and fork

To slice the cavity of my breast open

Like a crisp golden chicken

My thoughts were entertained in fact by the memory

Of Noel Coward's witticism about Salote

At the Queen's Coronation in 1953 -

Mister Coward was wise never to visit Tonga -

"Ah, there it is," he said, impaling my heart with his fork

And lifting it from its protective cage

I wept to see its pulsing beauty

But thought - This is only to be expected really

From people who eat and drink the body and blood

Of Christ every Sunday

"Best to rid yourself of this, old chap," he added

"Your Maori yearnings are excessive, you agree?"

I wondered if he was right, after all why yearn

For language and culture already taken, why fight it?

Where does Maoritanga fit in this world of teenage mutant Ninja turtles?

Yet I did protest and fight as he cut through the middle

Of my heart and, seeing that rich blood flow red as a river

Wondered if there was time to escape this dinner

"Oh no you don't" he said, as he began dessert

Dishing the sweetmeats of my body onto a crystal plate

My liver, kidneys and tongue

and last of all, my eyes

Smothering them with strawberries and rich cream

by then, without eyes, I could no longer see

The relish of his enjoyment

Cruelly, he left my brain intact to wonder

Why I had ever accepted his invitation to dine

150 years ago ---

Analysis 

In my opinion this poem has a very clear and concise structure to it. The tone of the poem is quite sarcastic and Irony is used by the author. For example The cannibal is described as having impeccable sophistication when, in reality, that is opposite of how a cannibal would act. When the cannibal begins to consume the guest, he first eats his legs and then moves on to breaking his arms and consuming them as well. This is symbolic of the power of the people being taken away from them. Basically without the arms, one is powerless and defenceless. 

The next area targeted is the chest as the cannibal goes for the heart. The heart is the centre of a human being and without it we lose all emotions. 

Harsh and severe words such as 'impaling' and 'pulsing' are used to show that this poem encompasses a wide spectrum of language. Also, the fact that the Europeans claimed to be kind and polite, and they may very well have been, but definitely not towards the Maori people. The Treaty has come under much speculation and scrutiny ever since it was signed. Because of this, it has resulted in the Maori having a sense of insignificance in their own society as well as being stripped of their own possessions. 

The author, Witi Ihimaera has deliberately gotten rid of full stops in the poem to represent the ongoing struggle that Maori people endured and continue to do since the 1840s. The use of the dash at the end of the poem is used to illustrate that there is doubt about whether the cycle of anguish will continue or if it has finally stopped. Overall, the poem shows the critical impact that colonization can have on native people. In this case, how it affected the Maori people. 

Creative Response - Short Story

"Why? Why did he leave me here, left to think?" I sat, pondering about what I would do with the remainder of time I had left in my life. Maybe I was destined to be left as a brain, just to think. I always was a thinker, never a doer. My train of thought began to drift off. My ideas were beginning to get fuzzy. This was probably just a side effect of being just a brain. The one thing I could concentrate on was the time I met the cannibal and how if I hadn't, my life would be different. 

His composed nature and upper-class style was what drew me in. These facts confused me as his true identity was nothing like how he looked. He had obviously learned the tricks of the trade and had done this to more than one person. He exuded confidence and when he invited me to dinner, it hardly seemed fair to deny the chance to meet him once more.  In comparison, I was almost the opposite. I was quieter and definitely not confident. I was not an upper-class, wealthy citizen like him. I was average and enjoyed the little things. This opportunity was something that I thought would get me into the loop and help me become a 'someone.' I was quite clearly wrong about the whole situation. 

My mind began to slip back into the now. I couldn't hear or see but all I could imagine was the cannibal, sucking at my bones and grinding my meat between his solid jaw. His teeth dripping with my blood and his fingers picking at my remains, trying to reap all that he could from my already decaying body. I hated the cannibal. I hated that he had made me nothing. I hated that  I couldn't move. I hated that all I could do was think. It left me with nothing. I finally was, nothing.