Macromere Press

It’s November 1st, All Saints’ Day, which means it’s time to announce the winner of the He Who Shall Remain Shameless Coffin Hop contest!

Congratulations go to our winner, Elizabeth Twist, who submitted the following entry:

“As for a real historical figure whom I would like to see as an apparition in [He Who Shall Remain Shameless], my recommendation is Bernd Jürgen Brandes, the German man who was murdered and eaten by Armin Meiwes, the ‘Rotenburg Cannibal,’ in 2001. Do you remember this case?

“Via a cannibal enthusiast website, Meiwes advertised that he was looking for someone who would volunteer to be cannibalized. Bernd Jürgen Brandes was that man. Brandes was apparently a full and willing participant in the entire process. The two of them recorded on video their initial attempt to eat Brandes’s severed penis. Meiwes subsequently killed Brandes and, over the next 10 months, ate a large quantity of him. Because Brandes allegedly asked to be killed, Meiwes was convicted of manslaughter, not murder. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armin_Meiwes) 

” ‘Why?’ is obviously a central question in this case. It’s almost impossible to comprehend what motivated Meiwes, but even more interesting I think is what could possibly have motivated Brandes. It seems that something superseded any sense of self-preservation. What is that something? What desire or need made Brandes do what he did? Why would a person want to be eaten? Inquiring minds want to know.”

After discussing with David Ewald, author of He Who Shall Remain Shameless, we agreed that this was definitely the strongest entry we received. Ms. Twist will receive a $5 Amazon gift card to be used on anything she likes!

We’d like to thank all those who participated in the Coffin Hop contest this past week. Happy All Saints’ Day to the living and the dead!