Priyanka Talwar Mr. Edwards Per. 2 Aristotle questions 1-10 1.

. States are considered to be a community that aims for good in the highest degree. States and communities are similar in that they both share the goal of aiming towards a greater good, however, states aim toward the highest good. The political community or state is considered to be the highest of all because it encompasses all of the smaller communities and must incorporate all of the values of these smaller communities. The highest good is what is considered to be best for the entire state. 2. A state comes into existence by the relationships between male and female and master and slave evolving into families. Families then group together to form larger villages, when they no longer need to simply survive, and finally a political state emerges. A state is natural because all of the prior relationships (male and female, master and slave, family and village) are natural, therefore so is the state. The instinct to be part of a state is natural in man (political animal), and allows mankind to remain civilized. For man, when perfected, is the best of animals, but when separated from law and justice, he is the worst of all The idea that man is a political animal is associated with the idea that the whole is of necessity prior to the part because since man is inclined to be a part of society naturally, the parts of the society cannot exist without the whole society intact; man needs society in order to function within a community. 3. Aristotles definition of a constitution is that it is a way of organizing the inhabitants of a city. Todays definition is a written record of a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed. Aristotles definition is more general because politics in ancient times was more basic and consisted of simply allowing citizens rights in their government. Our definition today is more detailed because people legally require a set list of rights and principles that govern our society. 4. Constitutions change when it undergoes a change in form and it presents a different way of organizing the citizens. The change in a constitution affects a city because the city must therefore change as a consequence because the constitution is no longer representing the same city as a community. Our country and our constitution are related similarly because the constitution is a representation of our rights and the principles the country upholds; if the constitution were to change, all of the services provided by the government as a consequence would change, altering the nation. 5. Sailors and citizens are analogous because although both sailors and citizens have different roles in their societies, all sailors and citizens have a certain excellence that can be applied to them. This excellence is relative to the constitution and all citizens must serve to the safety of the constitution. This idea is associated with civic virtue because civic virtue is the idea that certain personal habits should be restricted for the safety of the constitution and for the well being of the state. Citizens are therefore responsible for upholding the ideas of the constitution, regardless of the role they play in society. Only

one kind of constitution, therefore, must exist in a city for this type of society. It is possible for a good man to not be a good citizen because good man are judged by their ability to rule, while good citizens are expected to be good in ruling and obeying, therefore good men do not all qualities of a good citizen. However, it is advised that in order for one to be an adequate ruler, one must be previously ruled. 6. According to Aristotle, in the best form of a city, only those who hold a position in public office are considered to be citizens. Therefore, those who are ordinary people of the city, such as mechanics and laborers, cannot be citizens. However, in those cities in which all people of born in the city are considered to be citizens and it is stated that not all citizens can achieve the status of being a good citizen, who is one free of the tasks of life. 7. A constitution is related to a civic body because the civic body is the constitution. The civic body describes all those who are citizens of the society and conduct their daily affairs in a manner that protects the constitution. The goal of a community is to connect those with a common interest. Citizens often form and maintain political associations in a community. People join societies in order to pursue the good life. A constitution is judged by whether or not it considers the common interest of the whole society or only the personal interests of the ruler. 8. Right constitutions organized by the One, the Few, or the Many rule with a view of the common interest. They state what rights those who do not share the constitution in a society have and who can be a citizen. Kingship, Aristocracy, and Constitutional Government are examples of government with right constitutions. Perverted forms of these constitutions are Tyranny, Oligarchy, and Democracy because they rule only for the interest of specific people (the ruler, the wealthy, or the poor). Right constitutions become perverted by only serving the personal interests of the One, the Few, or the Many. Democracy can be considered to be only directed to the interest of the poor because, by definition, democracy is for the common interest of the majority and in most societies, the poor are the majority, therefore skewing the common interest toward their social and economic standings. 9. Justice is mean equality; those who are equal receive equality and those who are unequal receive inequality. A country should devote itself to the end of encouraging goodness because the qualities of the country, good or bad, encourage the actions that the government takes in order to maintain order. If the nation has good people, actions to condemn badness therefore wouldnt be necessary. Those who contribute to the political association (constitution) should have a greater share of the city than those who are greater than or equal to them in birth, decent, or wealth. Greater share means property in the society. 10. A majority will refrain from using majority rule because it is not in the common interest for the society (the minority is overruled). Aristotle states that this type of rule is unjust. Aristotle is wrong because the minority interests must still be kept in the value of the majority rule and if the minority wishes to overturn a majority ruling, many minority

groups would need to join together in order to overturn it; therefore, the minority would become the majority group. Democracy is best kept under majority rule because rulers need to convince at least half of the community to support the idea. 11. Individual judgment is often wrong or skewed due to the nature of the individual. Therefore, if there is a community compromised of a large group of individuals, it is more likely that the overall judgment will be a better display of perception necessary to serve the common good of the city. Each individual may indeed be a worse judge than the experts; but all, when they are meet are either better than experts or at any rate no worse. Direct democracy can only exist when the people are grouped together in assemblies, councils, and courts because they will have a better community judgment. Sovereignty is the power to rule over a territory. According to Aristotle, the people should be sovereign. 12. Aristotle defines justice as the good for the community in terms of the common interest. Politics is related to justice because in politics, all must be done in reference to the common good, and therefore, all the actions of the government that are done to achieve the common good can be considered just. Justice is related to equality because many associate the idea of promoting the common interest with equality for all those who share the constitution. Our politics and society is just because its actions all work towards the common interest of the entire community. However, our society cannot be equal because in order to be just, some measures must be taken that are unequal in order to achieve the common good, such as appointing those with higher rank or goodness to positions of public office. The best flute players do not get the best flutes; rather they are given the best tools in order to make the better flute. People of wealth and free birth are necessary for the existence of the country but just people who are good soldiers are needed to provide the good life. 13. According to Aristotle, the ones who should rule are those who are stronger. If the Few are stronger than the Many, they should be the ones who are sovereign. If one individual is stronger, he should be sovereign. The goal of this government is to achieve the common interest and this can only be done with rulers of the best goodness and those who are strong. Leveling is when one individual is far more superior to those who are sovereign and the government must make amends to this situation. Society should ostracize a person if they have too much influence on the society due to their wealth or political power. A person should be made permanent king when he is of outstanding excellence and the citizens must pay a willing obedience to this man. 14. The law and a ruler are related because the written law must be present in order to ensure the rights of the citizens but the ruler must have the passion to execute the laws so that all citizens oblige. Laws are not sovereign when they do not represent the whole community or the common interest. The ruling body decides when a law fails to hit the mark. A constitutional democracy is less likely to be corrupted because when more people are present in a ruling body, it is less likely that all of them will be enticed by their own corrupt ideas. When a king is in charge, it is more likely that he will be corrupt due to his own personal motivations and emotions.

15. Aristotles definition of a constitution is far more in-depth and detailed due to his analysis of the correct type of ruling body the role of citizens in a city. A constitution is an organization of offices in a city, by which the method of their distribution is fixed, the sovereign authority is determined, and the nature of the end to be pursued by the association and all its members is prescribed. It is necessary for all these aspects of the government to be predetermined in order to ensure the aim of the common interest and justice in the society. Laws are associated with the constitution because they provide the means by which the government is run and what checks and balances each ruler has on each other, to ensure that there is no corruption. It also lays out all of the power each ruling body has. 16. Aristotle recommends democracy because it allows for the greatest representation of the city and for the strongest (the Many) to be sovereign. In a tyranny, the ruler is corrupt and therefore does not rule in favor of the common interest. In an oligarchy, only those of wealth are sovereign, leaving out a vast majority of the society, therefore, not representing the common good. Democracy is the most moderate. 17. A demagogue is a political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires and prejudices rather than by using rational argument. This type of leader appeals to the emotions of the common people and uses the ignorance of lower classes to his advantage. A demagogue gains power in a government when the law is not the overarching ruler in a society and they are not enforced. This form of government leads to a monarchy ruled by the wealthy few who are able to harness the uneducated poor to their advantage, and eventually turns tyrannical. 18. Aristotle defines a proper constitution as one that contains both democratic and oligarchical elements, but yet neither of them. A proper constitution should be strong on its own merit; it should be stable by the means of its own plan and draw strength from the consensus of the entire city, not just the majority. 19. Aristotle favors the middle class because they are more likely to be the most obedient of all citizens. Those of the wealthier classes are born into a life of luxury and are therefore accustomed to receiving whatever they please. These citizens would be unlikely to conform to the laws in a democracy. In contrast, the poorer citizens would be resentful of the upper classes and would wish that all the actions of the government benefited them so they can become more economically stable. A large middle class limits factions because in democracies with a strong middle class present, the poor outnumber the wealth and therefore the common interest would be skewed in their direction, ensuing chaos in the society. 20. In a city where the middle class is larger than either the wealthy or the poor classes, the constitution is more likely to remain permanent. This is because the interests of the rich and the poor are too different for them to outweigh the middle class. Therefore, they would be unable to find a constitution that would suit them and the constitution that is instituted will remain as long as the middle class approves of it.

21. The parts of government, according to Aristotle, are the common affairs element, the element of public office, and the judicial element. The element of common affairs can be synonymous to our legislative branch because they pass laws that affect our common affairs in regards to the government. The element of public office can be related to the executive branch because the presidency is a public office that any citizen can run for. The judicial element is the same as our judicial branch. An election or a body of electors that equally represents the citizens should determine the deliberative body. In a mixed constitution, the people should be the ones who reject the laws, not pass them. In a constitutional government, those that hold public office reject the laws and those laws that are passed are referred back to the Many. In our government, the Few (officials) both reject and pass laws. 22. People have different constitutions because people have varying ways of putting justice and equality to practice. For instance, in a democracy, if one is born equal in one aspect, he should be treated equally in all aspects in the city. In an oligarchy, if the Few are unequal to the other citizens in terms of wealth, they viewed themselves as superior in all aspects. Our government has absolute justice because people are treated as equals under some aspects unless the government deems it just for citizens to be treated unequally (income tax at different rates). 23. In order to make a city happy, citizens must have a sense of goodness and wisdom, and their goodness and wisdom in order to conduct good and wise acts. According to Aristotle, it is up to a citizen to not only be a good citizen and have the quality to rule and to obey, but also be a good person. If the citizens are good people, the city can maintain function and the best way of life. 24. The happiness of a city is the same as the happiness of an individual. Only with a constitution and a political organization can one have the ability to be happy and have the best life. According the Aristotle, people only pay attention to justice when it is them being questioned or their own situation being examined but when it is a question of their fellow citizen, they no longer give a thought. 25. Citizens become good and virtuous by having the means of nature, habit, and reason. All three aspects must be attuned to each other in order to ensure the goodness and virtue of a man. Nature, habit, and reason are involved because men must act like men and not have the instincts of animals. Habits help to change the nature of a man that is undesirable in a city. Man must have reason in order to make just judgment. Moral education can help to accomplish this because it teaches a man to be able to effectively maintain the relationship necessary between nature, habit, and reason in order to be good and virtuous. 26. According to Aristotle, it is necessary for a citizen to be able to lead a life of peace and leisure as well as be able to do deeds of value. Deeds of value are actions that citizens should perform that help to make the city better. They are related to education because only through education, can one have the knowledge to perform such a deed. Education should last throughout ones whole life. All good citizens should person deeds

of value. 27. The purpose of birth is to start a beginning in order to end the end. Moral education should begin after childhood because it is more necessary for a childs body to be attended to then his or her mind. First the body should be taken care of for purposes of taking care of the soul and then the appetite should be controlled for purposes of maintaining the mind.