Aristotle: Politics

There is a notion that king, statesmen and household differ merely by the number of their subordinates under their control, however, it’s a mistake because they all need different traits and are different from one another. The origin and growth of the state need to be considered to have a clear view for example the human race will seize to continue if there is no union of males and females. These social interactions keep expanding, starting from the natural association of a family, who get together to form a village. Men are instinctively social but more importantly man is a political animal. Men are characterized by the fact that they can differentiate between just and unjust, good and evil etc. However, the state which is composed of people holds a greater significance than individuals because the whole is greater than its parts.

There is a difference between a good man and a good citizen. A definition of a good citizen will depend on the constitution of the community that the citizen is a part of; it will also depend on the community’s success. A state can be considered good if it is considered of good people; however, a state consists of many different people who need to be excellent citizens. The ruler needs to be a good and wise man, not the citizens because a ruler needs the wisdom which a subject may not. The citizens need to obey well and perform their duties; these duties also might need to be learned in order for one to be a ruler. The duties of a master are different than those of a slave. Their duties do not coincide. Another consideration is the fact that who constitutes as a citizen, there are many different classes of citizens and as communities expand, induction into these classes become more exclusive and those at the bottom of this hierarchy are termed as aliens. However, these people are deceived by the governments. There are different types of citizens. The man who shares the honours in the state is in the fullest sense a citizen.

There are many forms of rule by which human society is regulated; man is by nature a political animal so they desire to live together so that they can attain a measure of well-being. Political communities maintain life, which is really important for men. There are various kinds of rule including the rule of the master and household management. It is practiced at the first instance for the good of the governed so in political when the state is based on equality and justice people should naturally take turns in office but men want to be always in office. The true forms of government, where governance regards common interests, uphold justice whereas those who work in the interest of only the ruler are perverted and despotic. When only one person rules, its called kingship but when many administer the state, the government is called a constitution, which is a generic name. The forms of perversions of these forms of government are the following, tyranny (monarchy exercising the rule of a master over a political society), oligarchy (men of property have the government in their hands) and democracy (when the indigent are the rulers). However, there are difficulties about these forms of government because the real difference between democracy and oligarchy is poverty and wealth.