Politics   

exercised primarily with a view to the interest of the master, but
accidentally considers the slave, since, if the slave perish, the rule
of the master perishes with him. On the other hand, the government of
a wife and children and of a household, which we have called household
management, is exercised in the first instance for the good of the
governed or for the common good of both parties, but essentially for
the good of the governed, as we see to be the case in medicine,
gymnastic, and the arts in general, which are only accidentally
concerned with the good of the artists themselves. For there is no
reason why the trainer may not sometimes practice gymnastics, and the
helmsman is always one of the crew. The trainer or the helmsman
considers the good of those committed to his care. But, when he is one
of the persons taken care of, he accidentally participates in the
advantage, for the helmsman is also a sailor, and the trainer becomes
one of those in training. And so in politics: when the state is framed
upon the principle of equality and likeness, the citizens think that
they ought to hold office by turns. Formerly, as is natural, every one
would take his turn of service; and then again, somebody else would
look after his interest, just as he, while in office, had looked after
theirs. But nowadays, for the sake of the advantage which is to be
gained from the public revenues and from office, men want to be always
in office. One might imagine that the rulers, being sickly, were only
kept in health while they continued in office; in that case we may be
sure that they would be hunting after places. The conclusion is
evident: that governments which have a regard to the common interest
are constituted in accordance with strict principles of justice, and
are therefore true forms; but those which regard only the interest of
the rulers are all defective and perverted forms, for they are
despotic, whereas a state is a community of freemen.
Part VII
Having determined these points, we have next to consider how many
forms of government there are, and what they are; and in the first
place what are the true forms, for when they are determined the
perversions of them will at once be apparent. The words constitution
and government have the same meaning, and the government, which is the
supreme authority in states, must be in the hands of one, or of a few,
or of the many. The true forms of government, therefore, are those in
which the one, or the few, or the many, govern with a view to the
common interest; but governments which rule with a view to the private
interest, whether of the one or of the few, or of the many, are
perversions. For the members of a state, if they are truly citizens,
ought to participate in its advantages. Of forms of government in
which one rules, we call that which regards the common interests,
kingship or royalty; that in which more than one, but not many, rule,
aristocracy; and it is so called, either because the rulers are the
best men, or because they have at heart the best interests of the
state and of the citizens. But when the citizens at large administer
the state for the common interest, the government is called by the
generic name- a constitution. And there is a reason for this use of
language. One man or a few may excel in virtue; but as the number
increases it becomes more difficult for them to attain perfection in
every kind of virtue, though they may in military virtue, for this is
found in the masses. Hence in a constitutional government the
fighting-men have the supreme power, and those who possess arms are
the citizens.
Of the above-mentioned forms, the perversions are as follows: of
royalty, tyranny; of aristocracy, oligarchy; of constitutional
government, democracy. For tyranny is a kind of monarchy which has in
view the interest of the monarch only; oligarchy has in view the
interest of the wealthy; democracy, of the needy: none of them the
common good of all.
Part VIII
But there are difficulties about these forms of government, and it
will therefore be necessary to state a little more at length the