Homo homini lupus

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Homo homini lupus is a latin phrase meaning "man is a wolf to man." First attested in Plautus' Asinaria ("lupus est homo homini"), the sentence was drawn on by Thomas Hobbes when he wrote "Man to Man is an arrant Wolfe" in the opening line of the De cive, Epistola dedicatoria section of Leviathan as a concise expression of his view of human nature. The phrase is sometimes translated as "man is man's wolf", which can be interpreted to mean that men prey upon other men.

It is widely referenced when discussing the horrors of which humans are capable.

[edit] Notable citations

• Erasmus discusses Plautus' use of the phrase in Adagia first published in 1500.
• The title of a 1999 album by the Italian band La Locanda delle Fate.
• As 'Homo Homini Lupis' it is the title of a 2002 episode of the television series Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
• The title of an Italian short movie directed by Matteo Rovere in 2006.
• The title of a 2007 album by the German band Les Chasseurs De La Nuit.