--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Greek historian Herodotus, writing…" description: "\"“The Greek historian Herodotus, writing over two thousand years ago, produced one of the first descriptions of one culture getting worked up over the d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/caitlin-doughty-12025_cannibals_the-greek-historian-herodotus-writing-ov_2966228.jpg" --- # The Greek historian Herodotus, writing over two thousand… ![“The Greek historian Herodotus, writing over two thousand years ago, produced one of the first descriptions of one culture getting worked up over the death rituals of another. In the story, the ruler of the Persian Empire summons a group of Greeks before him. Since they cremate their dead, the king…” quote by Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/caitlin-doughty-12025_cannibals_the-greek-historian-herodotus-writing-ov_2966228.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/caitlin-doughty-12025_cannibals_the-greek-historian-herodotus-writing-ov_2966228.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/caitlin-doughty-12025_cannibals_the-greek-historian-herodotus-writing-ov_2966228.jpg) > ““The Greek historian Herodotus, writing over two thousand years ago, produced one of the first descriptions of one culture getting worked up over the death rituals of another. In the story, the ruler of the Persian Empire summons a group of Greeks before him. Since they cremate their dead, the king wonders, "What would \[it\] take \[for them\] to eat their dead fathers?" The Greeks balk at this question, explaining that no price in the world would be high enough to turn them into cannibals. Next, the king summons a group of Callatians, known for eating the bodies of their dead. He asks, "What price would make them burn their dead fathers with fire?" The Callatians beg him not to mention "such horrors!”” [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The anecdote shows how cultural taboos shape moral judgments and that what is abhorrent to one society may be normal to another. **In simple terms:** Cultural norms dictate what we find acceptable or repulsive. Key Takeaway Recognize and respect cultural differences. Themes culture morality taboos anthropology Mood thoughtful reflective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - cross‑cultural negotiations - museum curation - funeral practices - international diplomacy Key Concepts cultural relativism ethical frameworks Questions to Reflect On - How do we navigate ethical dilemmas when cultures clash? - What criteria should guide us in judging another culture’s practices? A Different Perspective Assuming one culture’s standards are universal can cause conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cannibals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cannibals/) [Dead father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dead-father/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death Rituals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-rituals-1120807/) [Herodotus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/herodotus/) [Herodotus Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/herodotus-writing-4543992/) [Historian Herodotus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historian-herodotus-4373727/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/) ## Related quotes > [“Every culture has death rituals with the power to shock the uninitiated and challenge our personal web of significance—from the Wari’ roasting the flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/every-culture-has-death-rituals-with-the-power-to-shock-the/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“In that moment, standing at the edge of the pit, I'm sure Brébeuf was moved by the death rituals of the Wendat people. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/in-that-moment-standing-at-the-edge-of-the-pit-i-m-sure-br-beuf-was/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“I have come to believe that the merits of a death custom are not based on mathematics (e.g., 36.7 percent a "barbarous act"), but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/i-have-come-to-believe-that-the-merits-of-a-death-custom-are-not/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [A couple years ago, the novelist Russell Banks told me he was reading the ancient Greek historian Herodotus. I asked why. He said, 'Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/a-couple-years-ago-the-novelist-russell-banks-told-me-he-was-reading/) [Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/) > [Firemen have a culture of death. There are rituals, carefully constructed for the living, to process the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/firemen-have-a-culture-of-death-there-are-rituals-carefully/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“There are those, too, who are ethnically predisposed in favor of funerals, who recognize among the black drapes and dirges an emotionally potent and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-lynch/there-are-those-too-who-are-ethnically-predisposed-in-favor-of/) [Thomas Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-lynch/) > [In culture after culture, people believe that the soul lives on after death, that rituals can change the physical world and divine the truth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/in-culture-after-culture-people-believe-that-the-soul-lives-on-after/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [“Yeast. The word comes to us through Old English, from the Indo-European root 'yes'- meaning boil, foam, bubble. It does all those things, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christa-parrish/yeast-the-word-comes-to-us-through-old-english-from-the-indo-european/) [Christa Parrish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christa-parrish/) > [“As to the ancient historians, from Herodotus to Tacitus , we credit them as far as they relate things probable and credible, and no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/as-to-the-ancient-historians-from-herodotus-to-tacitus-we-credit-them/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“a historian named Herodotus, tells of a thief who was to be executed. As he was taken away he made a bargain with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-niven/a-historian-named-herodotus-tells-of-a-thief-who-was-to-be-executed/) [Larry Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-niven/) > [“Here Herodotus can be of some help again. “As to the customs of the Persians, I know them to be these. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/here-herodotus-can-be-of-some-help-again-as-to-the-customs-of-the/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [Herodotus is not more indisputably the father of history than is Sir Boyle Roche the father of Bulls. No doubt there were makers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyle-roche/herodotus-is-not-more-indisputably-the-father-of-history-than-is-sir/) [Boyle Roche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyle-roche/) > [“People who dislike budging from their homes or walking beyond their own backyards--and they are always and everywhere in the majority--treat Herodotus' sort, fundamentally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryszard-kapuscinski/people-who-dislike-budging-from-their-homes-or-walking-beyond-their/) [Ryszard Kapuściński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryszard-kapuscinski/) > [“Herodotus, the ‘Father of History’, records the moment – and you can hear the emotion in his voice as he does so, a mixture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bettany-hughes/herodotus-the-father-of-history-records-the-moment-and-you-can-hear/) [Bettany Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bettany-hughes/) > [“And it is plain enough, not from this instance only, but from many everywhere, that freedom is an excellent thing since even the Athenians,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lacey/and-it-is-plain-enough-not-from-this-instance-only-but-from-many/) [Jim Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lacey/) ## More by Caitlin Doughty > [“Dead people look very, very dead. It is difficult to grasp what that means, since it’s unlikely that any of us will stumble across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/dead-people-look-very-very-dead-it-is-difficult-to-grasp-what-that/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“The most salacious stories—bones ground in a metal blender or torture-spike eye caps—had the power to disrupt people’s polite complacency about death. Rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/the-most-salacious-stories-bones-ground-in-a-metal-blender-or-torture/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“We do not (and will not) have the resources to properly care for our increasing elderly population, yet we insist on medical intervention to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/we-do-not-and-will-not-have-the-resources-to-properly-care-for-our/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“He explained that he talks about death "all the time" with his friends. They ask each other, "Hey, what you want when you die?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/he-explained-that-he-talks-about-death-all-the-time-with-his-friends/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Many children and grandchildren of immigrants, have, like Sarah, found themselves severed from their family’s cultural rituals. The funeral system in the United States…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/many-children-and-grandchildren-of-immigrants-have-like-sarah-found/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“I have come to believe that the merits of a death custom are not based on mathematics (e.g., 36.7 percent a "barbarous act"), but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/i-have-come-to-believe-that-the-merits-of-a-death-custom-are-not/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“It was death that the public was being cheated out of by the funeral industry, not money. The realistic interaction with death and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/it-was-death-that-the-public-was-being-cheated-out-of-by-the-funeral/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Exposing a young child to the realities of love and death is far less dangerous than exposing them to the lie of the happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/exposing-a-young-child-to-the-realities-of-love-and-death-is-far-less/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Rather than let author and environmentalist Edward Abbey be buried in a traditional cemetery, his friends stole his body, wrapped it in a sleeping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/rather-than-let-author-and-environmentalist-edward-abbey-be-buried-in/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“The ICU was not the thrill ride I had expected. Turns out, they never called the high school student in from the reception desk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/the-icu-was-not-the-thrill-ride-i-had-expected-turns-out-they-never/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Death should be known. Known as a difficult mental, physical, and emotional process, respected and feared for what it is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/death-should-be-known-known-as-a-difficult-mental-physical-and/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Untreated, a dead person’s face looks horrific, at least by our very narrow cultural expectations. Their droopy, open eyes cloud over in a vacant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/untreated-a-dead-person-s-face-looks-horrific-at-least-by-our-very/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“It is worth noting that the main players in the recomposition project are women—scientists, anthropologists, lawyers, architects. Educated women, who have the privilege to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/it-is-worth-noting-that-the-main-players-in-the-recomposition-project/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“Death might appear to destroy the meaning in our lives, but in fact it is the very source of our creativity. As Kafka said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/death-might-appear-to-destroy-the-meaning-in-our-lives-but-in-fact-it/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) > [“As a general rule, if anyone ever asks you to put stockings on a ninety-year-old deceased Romanian woman with edema, your answer should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-doughty/as-a-general-rule-if-anyone-ever-asks-you-to-put-stockings-on-a/) [Caitlin Doughty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) [Explore all 56 Caitlin Doughty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-doughty/) ## More Cannibals quotes > [“One theory on cannibals, of course, is that they eat parts of their slain enemies to benefit from that person's greatest assets - their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/one-theory-on-cannibals-of-course-is-that-they-eat-parts-of-their/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) > [“If there is anything more delicious than a sausage roasted over an open Bunsen burner, I can't image what it might be--Porcelain and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/if-there-is-anything-more-delicious-than-a-sausage-roasted-over-an/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [“Yes, cannibals. People are just cannibals unless they leave each other alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/yes-cannibals-people-are-just-cannibals-unless-they-leave-each-other/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“In many of these countries they have no written language, consequently no Bible, and are only led by the most childish customs and traditions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-carey/in-many-of-these-countries-they-have-no-written-language-consequently/) [William Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-carey/) > [“The most holy cannibalism you can perform is to eat the flesh and blood of sagacity, and by sharing it with other wisdom thirsty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/the-most-holy-cannibalism-you-can-perform-is-to-eat-the-flesh-and/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Is it true that cannibals don't eat clowns because they taste funny?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/is-it-true-that-cannibals-don-t-eat-clowns-because-they-taste-funny/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [“Cannibals need love too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/cannibals-need-love-too/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [Cannibals prefer those who have no spines..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-lem/cannibals-prefer-those-who-have-no-spines/) [Stanislaw Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-lem/) > [Most of the people will have died and the rest of us will be cannibals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-turner/most-of-the-people-will-have-died-and-the-rest-of-us-will-be-cannibals/) [Ted Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-turner/) > [Are there any vegetarians among cannibals?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/are-there-any-vegetarians-among-cannibals/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [Whenever cannibals are on the brink of starvation, Heaven, in its infinite mercy, sends them a fat missionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/whenever-cannibals-are-on-the-brink-of-starvation-heaven-in-its/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/when-cannibals-ate-a-missionary-they-got-a-taste-of-religion/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [No. The moral of the story in so far as it has one is that cannibals can study logic, and that if you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-harkaway/no-the-moral-of-the-story-in-so-far-as-it-has-one-is-that-cannibals/) [Nick Harkaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-harkaway/) > [“You know Dahmer was a cannibal. You think he was a zombie?” Tom smirked. “I’m no expert, but not all cannibals are zombies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-timmons-zombie-city/you-know-dahmer-was-a-cannibal-you-think-he-was-a-zombie-tom-smirked/) [H.D. Timmons - Zombie City](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-timmons-zombie-city/) > [“I Play Dodgeball with Cannibals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/i-play-dodgeball-with-cannibals/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) [Browse all 71 Cannibals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cannibals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Greek historian Herodotus, writing over two thousand years ago, produced one of the first descriptions of one culture getting worked up over the death rituals of another. In the story, the ruler of the Persian Empire summons a group of Greeks before him. Since they cremate their dead, the king wonders, \"What would [it] take [for them] to eat their dead fathers?\" The Greeks balk at this question, explaining that no price in the world would be high enough to turn them into cannibals. Next, the king summons a group of Callatians, known for eating the bodies of their dead. 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