Aristotle: politics
...alism. Chapter 2 is when Aristotle first compares people to animals, and states that the reasons he uses are all based in nature. He defines couples as people who come together out of necessity, and then gives two examples: men and women for procreation, and slave and owner for survival. Aristotle states that those who possess natural insight should rule those who use their body for labor, and that this relationship is beneficial to both. He goes on to agree with the poets who say "it is proper for Greeks to rule non-Greeks." In the second part of this chapter, Aristotle explains how a city-state is formed. The first ingredient is a household, which becomes a community, than a village, and when the village reaches a point of self-sufficiency, it is called a city-state. He uses this line of evolution to parallel how a man comes to rule his house, and draws form this the concept that a city-state is made of nature. He goes on to state that men are, compared to animals, the most political of creatures, and that it is natural for them to belong to a city-state. Chapter 3 deals with why a man rules his household and the concept of wealth acquisition. Aristotle also first mentions that if slavery involves force, than it is unjust. Chapter 4 deals with property acquisition and differentiates between different kinds of property. A piece of property that is used as a tool is for production, whereas an actual piece of property is used for action. Aristotle further justifies slavery here by stating that a slave is a piece of property, and a tool to be used by his master. In Chapter 5, Aristotle starts out by again saying that all slavery is against nature, but then immediately says that being ruled is both necessary and beneficial. He compares how some people rule over others to the way a soul rules over a body. Aristotle also restates that men are superior, and women inferior, but Arnhart states that in other works Aristotle actually claims that women are more apt to learning and more clever than men. He concludes this chapter by again reversing his line of thinking and stating that "slavery is both just and beneficial." ...