Aristotle s Views On The Morality Of Government - 1350 Words

The question of the morality of government has been one ever since the first prehistoric humans came together to form bands of nomads. This question was especially something the ancient Greek philosophers argued over as they were ruled by a patriarchal democracy. Plato and later Aristotle grappled with this question over who should rule and what various forms or kinds of rule would look like. Aristotle mentions a few various true forms of government such as a kingship, aristocracy, and polity as well as their perverted forms such a tyranny, oligarchy, and democracy. The perverted forms are the same as the true ones only the true forms rule for the common interest and the perverted forms rule only to benefit the ruler(s). This represents†¦show more content†¦(1280a 5) This is why a polity might be the most effective kind of rule because it combines the need for government by the rich, but it allows the poor to have a say within representation as well. It is a compromise betwe en a true aristocracy/oligarchy and a democracy. So there is combined rule by both the rich and poor. This is why it is the most practical and rational because it allows for the rich (who would have ruled) to rule and the poor (who would have been ruled) to rule as well. So long as the government fulfills the common interest, this is the best kind of rule proposed by Aristotle. There are few major differences between Machiavellian political theory and Aristotelian political theory. Machiavelli saw principalities as the future of government and that only under a successful prince could people from various territories come together and unify under one ruler. Machiavelli offered virtu as the example for rulers rather than virtue. The difference is that virtu was about the ruler ruling effectively for the good of the people versus virtue which states that a person should be good and act justly. Machiavelli was only interested in the results of rule in using virtu rather than the person who was doing the ruling. Though Machiavelli does offer guidelines for a ruler to always be kind and to not take property from his subjects. Aristotle saw virtue as something that everybody should strive for ratherShow MoreRelatedEssay on Machiavellis The Prince: Politics, War, and Human Nature1334 Words   |  6 Pagesmany visions of morality put up on pedestals by thinkers be fore his time. He doesnt turn to God or to some sort of common good for his political morality. Instead, he turns to the individual?more specifically, self-preservation in a position of power. Machiavellis vision rules out the possibility of a higher political authority if higher is meant to say that the morality comes from the divine, but his vision certainly does not rule out any sort of higher political morality. 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