BEST IELTS Academic Reading Test 477

Table of Contents

IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST 477 – PASSAGE – 1

IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST – 477

READING PASSAGE – 1

Cannibalism

A. The term cannibalism means the eating of human flesh by human beings, and/or eating of animals by members of their own species. Cannibalism was derived from the Carib Indians, discovered by Christopher Columbus, of the West Indies. The Caribs were man-eaters, and the Spanish name for the tribe was Canibales, meaning bloodthirsty and cruel.

B. The practice of cannibalism reaches back into antiquity and has been found in many areas of the world. Evidence indicates that it may have been practiced as early as the Neolithic Period. The Greek historian Herodotus and other ancient writers gave accounts of various ancient people as being cannibals. Marco Polo reported tribes ranging from Tibet to Sumatra who practiced cannibalism. North American Indian tribes of the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico practiced cannibalism. Until recently the practice prevailed throughout much of central and western Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Melanesia, Sumatra, New Guinea, Polynesia, and remote portions of South America.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

C. Cannibalism at times has had religious significance. This stems from the belief that the person who eats of the deceased person acquires the desired qualities or characteristics of that person, which resemble the theory of sympathetic magic; examples of this are seen in Attraction of Blood. Rituals were performed for many reasons including purification, pacification of gods, and ancestor worship. In a few instances cannibalism has been practiced for just revenge.

In other cases it was believed that the ghost of the enemy would be utterly destroyed when his body was eaten, thus leaving nothing in which his spirit could exist. Some examples of religious cannibalism are these: The Binderwurs of central India ate their sick and aged in the belief that the act was pleasing to their goddess Kali. In Mexico the Aztecs to their deities sacrificed thousands of human victims annually. Following the sacrifices, the Aztec priest and people ate the bodies of the victims believing the acts brought them closer to their gods.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

D. The charge of cannibalism is a common insult, and it is likely that some alleged cannibal groups have merely been victims of popular fear and misrepresentation. Widespread cannibalism is usually not found in state-level societies, which have the means to tax and control surplus labor. Nevertheless, one of the most famous cases of cannibalism is that of the Aztecs, who sacrificed their prisoners of war and undoubtedly ate some of them. According to available evidence, most authorities consider the partaking of human flesh almost always to be a ritual practice.

A minority of anthropologists, however, believe cannibalism emerged as a cultural response to chronic protein shortages. In modern Western society, cannibalism is committed only by the deranged or by people who otherwise face death from starvation (see Donner Party). In contrast, various traditional cultures are known to have encouraged their members to eat part of their kinsmen’s corpses out of respect for the deceased in a practice known as endo-cannibalism.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

For example, Foré women of New Guinea, who dispose of the dead, ritually ate their deceased relatives’ brains. Some anthropologists believe that head-hunting evolved from cannibalism. Among a few peoples the head of the enemy is preserved and the rest of the body or selected parts of it are eaten; this may represent a connecting link between cannibalism and head-hunting. The term cannibalism is also used in zoology to describe species who prey upon their own kind, such as lions, crabs, ants, and some kinds of fish.

E. Cannibalism is nearly considered a taboo among Western cultures and the instances of it occurring are extremely rare. In the case of starvation it has occurred. Two notable cases are the first in America, the Donner Party caught crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California during the winter of 1846-1847; and the second in Chile in 1972, sixteen members of a Uruguayan soccer team survived for 70 days after their airliner crashed in the Andres Mountains.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

F. Some animals have been known to participate in cannibalism. Wolves are known to eat injured members of their packs. Rats and pigs have been observed eating the young of their species. Among insect it is well know that the female spider eats the male after mating. Larger mantes often eat smaller ones, and the female mantis devours the male.

Questions 1-6

Reading passage 1 has six paragraphs, A-F.

Which paragraph contains the following information?

Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.

1. Varying opinions regarding the practice of cannibalism.

2. Cannibalism and its relation to religion.

3. The origin of the term ‘cannibalism’.

4. Widespread practice of cannibalism.

5. Examples of animals that eat fellow animals.

6. Examples of cannibalism in the last few centuries.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

Questions 7-13

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

The word ‘cannibalism’ has its origin from a (7)……………….. word which means (8)……………….. This practice dates back to (9)……………….. Cannibalism prevailed throughout much of the world until recently.

Sometimes, cannibalism arises from the misconception that by eating the body parts of the deceased, one can gain that person’s (10)………………..

In other cases it was believed that the ghost of the enemy would be utterly (11)……………….. when his body was eaten, thus leaving nothing in which his (12)……………….. could exist.

Though it is undoubtedly proved that ancient societies practiced cannibalism, the allegation of cannibalism is considered as a (13)……………….. in the modern world.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

SEE MORE POSTS>>