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Aristotle's Comprehensive
Political Theory
Aristotle
Life Sketch
Aristotle (384-322BC) was born in Stagira in Macedonia (now northern Greece), the son of court physician to the king of Macedonia. At the age of 17, he went to Athens to study at the Academy under Plato. When Plato died, in 347 BC, Aristotle left Athens. Between 342 and 336 BC he was tutor to the teenage son of the king of Macedonia, the future Alexander the Great. He returned to Athens in 335 BC to set up his own school, the Lyceum, as a competitor to the Academy.
Aristotle's Theory of Form
Aristotle thought that in order to explain coherence and objective knowledge in this world, form must be located in particular individual objects. Instead of splitting the world into two separate realms, Aristotle divides objects into two parts or aspects: form and matter. All objects are composed of a certain material arranged in a certain way. The material they are composed of is their matter, and the way it is arranged is their form. The material or matter would be the blocks, and the house and the wall have the matter arranged in different ways, thus having different forms. The house is still just one material object, yet it has two different aspects, its form and its matter.
Aristotle uses this distinction to explain how there can be both permanence and change in the world. Change can occur because the same matter can be arranged in different ways, and in change, it is the form that changes while the matter remains the same. Yet, even though the form of an object can change, it is form, not matter, that provides the order and permanence in the world. The essential form of a thing makes it what it is and guides the thing through its changes to its final goal, allowing for permanent objects in a changing world.
Virtues
Aristotle explains that virtues are dispositions to choose good actions and passions, informed by moral knowledge of several sorts, and motivated both by a desire for characteristic goods and by a desire to perform virtuous acts for their own sake. Each virtue governs a different sphere of human life, but all virtues are conducive to happiness. Aristotle maintains that virtuous acts lie in a mean relative to the situation, and that virtue is acquired through habituation and teaching, presupposing natural aptitude as well as certain goods of fortune.
Aristotle's View on the State
Like Plato, Aristotle rejects the sophist view that political society is the product of convention. According to Aristotle, the state was developed from the family to satisfy the needs and desires of the people. Aristotle believed that the state is a natural destination of man and that those who thought of the state were the greatest human benefactors. He argued that the state is not an association of isolated individuals, but a culmination of widening circles of human associations based on human wants.
Aristotle justified the natural character of the state with theological arguments, asserting that the true nature of man could be realized only in the state, and that since man is a rational being, the state is a rational institution. Aristotle considered the state as an association of men for the sake of the best moral life, with the functions of promoting a perfect and self-sufficing life, creating essential conditions for mental, moral, and physical development of the people, and promoting the good by training young minds in the way of righteousness.
Man as a Political Animal
Aristotle was the first to call man a "Zoon politikon," or a "political animal." He believed that the spirit that distinguishes man as a rational being is "incapable of being destroyed" and is a special part of the psyche (soul), which in turn is the force that animates the body. The soul is the "trained" body, and contrary to Plato's spirit, does not have a separate existence from the body. The soul has both currency and potential, and carries with it the means to achieve its purpose.
Aristotle argued that man lives in a "polis," or a society governed by laws and customs, and that man develops his potential and realizes his natural end in this social context. This is not an easy life, but a life of virtue is reflected in the highest good (eudaimonia), often translated as happiness. Aristotle believed that the state is a natural form of organization, and that by nature, man has become a member of the state. Therefore, both the state and individuals as its members are natural. Continuing this logic, Aristotle said that man is by nature a political animal, meaning an animal that lives in a polis or state. Nature has inspired and encouraged man to be a part of the state, and Aristotle believed that it was not possible for man to live outside the state, as it fulfills all his requirements. If a man is unable to get membership in a polis, he will come down to the level of a sub-man, and if anyone refuses to live in a state, they may be regarded as a superman.
Aristotle's Views on the Nature of Man and
the State
The Nature of Man as a Political Animal
Aristotle believed that it is the nature of man to live in a state. He argued that nature has endowed man alone among the animals with the power of
Aristotle considered Polity to be the best and most practicable form of government because it possessed a healthy combination of liberty and wealth. He believed that Monarchy and Aristocracy had a tendency to degenerate and did not possess the qualities of moderation and stability that were characteristic of Polity.
Aristotle also believed that no form of government or constitution is permanent or everlasting, and the different forms of government keep on changing in a cycle, popularly known as Aristotle's cycle of change.
Criticisms of Aristotle's Classification
Aristotle's classification of states has been subjected to several criticisms:
It is not applicable to the present times, as it does not cover a number of governments that exist today, such as limited Monarchy, Totalitarian Government, Parliamentary Government, and Federalism.
Aristotle considered Democracy as a perverted form of government, whereas in modern times, it is considered the best form of government in which the individual gets maximum opportunities to develop their personality.
Aristotle's classification is primarily a classification of governments and not states.
The classification is not based on any scientific principles, and the distinction between Aristocracy and Polity is mainly based on numbers.
Despite these criticisms, Aristotle's classification of states has proved to be most lasting, and most political thinkers who have offered classifications of states or governments have largely followed the basis adopted by Aristotle.
