The Marble and the Myrthe: About the Inconstancy of the Savage's Soul

Abstract

When the jesuits were catechizing the Tupinamba they noted the "inconstancy" of the indians in their religious conversion process. They seemed very interested on the jesuits education but even after a period of learning process, the Indians insisted on going back to their old habits. The article tries to understand the reasons and implications of such "inconstancy". Revenge and cannibalism are very important factors for the understanding of the Tupinamba. These notions constituted that society and promoted its continuity. Acording to the author, the acceptance of the cannibalism prohibition by the Tupinamba was one of the Tupinamba's greatest lost.