Homo Necans

Okay kiddo, let's talk about something called homo necans. This is a really fancy term that means "man the killer." This term comes from a book written by a guy named Walter Burkert all about violence and killing throughout history.

Now, homo necans isn't really about people just going around and killing each other for fun. Instead, Burkert is talking about something deeper - the idea that humans are more violent than most other animals, and that this violence has been with us for a really long time.

You see, even though we like to think of ourselves as nice, friendly creatures, humans have been killing each other and other animals for as long as we've been around. We've always had a tendency towards violence - even our ancient ancestors used to hunt and kill animals just for food.

But there's something else going on with homo necans too. Burkert argues that our violent tendencies are actually an important part of what makes us human. He says that the ability to use violence to get what we want - whether that's food, territory, or power - is something that sets us apart from other animals.

So, in a way, homo necans is all about understanding that humans have a dark side, but that this darkness is also a big part of what makes us who we are. It's a complicated idea, but one that helps us think about why we do the things we do, both good and bad.