At the very beginning of the Politics, Aristotle says that household arises out of two relationships: the relationship between man and woman and the relationship between master and slave. We have already examined the relationship between man and woman, and the parent-child relationship which stems from the marriage of man and woman.
Full Answer
How does Aristotle argue for the necessity of the family?
Finally, Aristotle can be seen to argue for the necessity of the family in Book II of the Politics, but from a different perspective: not from the nature of the family, but from the nature of the state. He does so in addressing the errors of Socrates’ view of the state:
What is the relationship between father and child according to Aristotle?
[1] As with the relationship between husband and wife, Aristotle chooses to first illuminate the relationship between fathers and children by analogy to a form of political rule (in this case, kingship): …The friendship of a king for those who live under his rule depends on his superior ability to do good.
Why are first principles so important?
Principles change as your understanding changes, but they should be mostly static to effectively work as a mental model for your life. And that is the ultimate goal. After all, as Aristotle said, “ Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. ” First principles are the stepping stones to that knowledge.
What is the difference between Plato and Aristotle?
Plato (c. 428–c. Aristotle also investigated areas of philosophy and fields of science that Plato did not seriously consider. According to a conventional view, Plato’s philosophy is abstract and utopian, whereas Aristotle’s is empirical, practical, and commonsensical. How does Aristotle compare tragedy with history?
What is the first virtue according to Aristotle?
One such virtue, I expect, that none would object to is the virtue of courage. And this, in fact, is the first virtue Aristotle speaks about in detail.
What are Aristotle's 3 classifications of government?
oligarchy: government by the few. timocracy: government by the honored or valued. tyranny: government by one for himself.
What is Aristotle's main theory?
In his metaphysics, he claims that there must be a separate and unchanging being that is the source of all other beings. In his ethics, he holds that it is only by becoming excellent that one could achieve eudaimonia, a sort of happiness or blessedness that constitutes the best kind of human life.
What was Aristotle's proposal?
In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle proposed that humans are social, rational animals that seek to “live well.” To that end, he proposed a system of ethics designed to help us reach eudaimonia, a world that means living well or flourishing.
Who first classified the government?
Aristotle made one of the earliest attempts to classify government structures. He distinguished between states ruled by one person, by the few and the many — monarchy, aristocracy and mixed government.
What are the 3 basic forms of government?
Our federal government has three parts. They are the Executive, (President and about 5,000,000 workers) Legislative (Senate and House of Representatives) and Judicial (Supreme Court and lower Courts).
What did Aristotle say?
It is impossible, Aristotle says, to be really good without wisdom or to be really wise without moral virtue. Only when correct reasoning and right desire come together does truly virtuous action result. Virtuous action, then, is always the result of successful practical reasoning.
What is Aristotle best known for?
Aristotle was one of the greatest philosophers who ever lived and the first genuine scientist in history. He made pioneering contributions to all fields of philosophy and science, he invented the field of formal logic, and he identified the various scientific disciplines and explored their relationships to each other.
What did Aristotle's new theory say?
Aristotle did not believe in the atomic theory and he taught so otherwise. He thought that all materials on Earth were not made of atoms, but of the four elements, Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. He believed all substances were made of small amounts of these four elements of matter.
What are Aristotle's 4 virtues?
Given that I have an undergraduate background in philosophy, I was intrigued and decided to show him a page in one of my books (Dictionary of Scholastic Philosophy, Wuellner, 1956) summarizing Aristotle's four cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude.
What were Aristotle's teachings?
One of the main focuses of Aristotle's philosophy was his systematic concept of logic. Aristotle's objective was to come up with a universal process of reasoning that would allow man to learn every conceivable thing about reality.
What does Aristotle say about friendship?
Aristotle addresses this specifically in the Ethics: Friendship is present to the extent that men share something in common, for that is also the extent to which they share a view of what is just. And the proverb “friends hold in common what they have” is correct, for friendship consists in community.
What does Aristotle's conception of natural slavery mean?
Further, the fact that Aristotle’s conception of natural slavery is of mutual advantage to both master and slave does not mean that he believes all slavery to be just. If one were to enslave someone perfectly capable of determining the proper ends and the means for reaching them, one would do a grave injustice.
What book of the ethics talks about the idea of the other self?
The idea of the other self is explicitly established in Book IX of the Ethics: We count as a friend a person who wishes for and does what is good or what appears to him to be good for his friend’s sake; or a person who wishes for the existence and life of his friend for his friend’s sake….
What is the first thing constituted of soul and body?
But an animal is the first thing constituted of soul and body, of which the one thing is the ruling element by nature, the other the ruled…. It is then in an animal, as we were saying, that one can first discern both the sort of rule characteristic of a master and political rule.
Why is the household peculiarly able to develop its members’ idea of friendship?
The household is peculiarly able to develop its members’ idea of friendship: not merely because it provides one’s first experience of companionship, but because the experience of “another self” within the household is had in a unique way and the experience of a common life is thorough-going.
What is the advantage of a child who grows up within a strong, properly ordered marriage and household?
A child who grows up within a strong, properly ordered marriage and household, in which all of the adult members aim at the good, has a significant advantage when it comes time for him to devote himself to the art of household management.
How does the household contribute to the development of its members?
The household can also be seen to contribute to the development of its members’ perfection in civic virtue —a particular sort of virtue with regard to one’s participation in the political life. One way in which the household can be seen to develop this particular virtue is with regard to the parents. If the end of the particular state that they live within is truly the good for man, they will of course desire to contribute to the perpetuation of that state, so that it may continue to accomplish its end. As such, they will bring forth offspring with an eye towards those children participating in the life of the state, and they will educate their children such that the children have a correct understanding of the regime and its aim.
IV. Relationships Within The Household: Parents and Children
v. Relationships Within The Household: Master and Slave
- At the very beginning of the Politics, Aristotle says that household arises out of two relationships: the relationship between man and woman and the relationship between master and slave.We have already examined the relationship between man and woman, and the parent-child relationship which stems from the marriage of man and woman. Now we turn to t...
VI. Other Selves and Commonness Within The Household
- Now that we have discussed the basic aspects of all of the ruler-ruled relationships within the household, we will turn our attention to how the household relates to the state. One of the primary ways in which the household prepares those within it for their life in the state is through friendship within the family. The household is peculiarly able to develop its members’ idea of friendship: no…
VII. The Development of Moral Virtue Within The Household
- We now turn to a consideration of the ways in which the household can be said to form its members with regard to moral virtue. We have already touched on the fact that the parents’ approach towards the raising of the children must be one which results in the children having the proper attitude towards pleasure and pain. (Remember that the moral virtues, for Aristotle, are o…
VIII. Development of Civic Virtue Within The Family
- The household can also be seen to contribute to the development of its members’ perfection in civic virtue—a particular sort of virtue with regard to one’s participation in the political life. One way in which the household can be seen to develop this particular virtue is with regard to the parents. If the end of the particular state that they live within is truly the good for man, they will o…
IX. Necessity of The Household
- Now that we have made a beginning in the investigation into Aristotle’s conception of the household and the ways in which it prepares and perfects its members for their life within the state, it is important to consider the fact that the family is a natural institution and, as such, a necessary one. Not only is the work of the family, when properly realized, complementary to the …
X. Conclusion
- It is true to say that the end of the household is properly “the supply of men’s everyday wants,” because this is what the family is able to bring about completely. But we have also seen that, in various ways, the household makes a beginning in the state’s project of perfecting its citizens, and that it is the only institution which can play this most necessary role. The fact that the househol…