A constitution is a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or another organisation is acknowledged to be governed. The purpose of the constitution is to determine the identity of the state. Every community has its own ideals, values and objectives and it’s around those ideas that a constitution is framed. This essay seeks to explain why Aristotle advocates a mixed constitution. The first half of the paper with outline the different categories of constitutions and the second part will breakdown the various forms of constitutions and finally conclude by arguing that polity is the only constitution which provides the balance to be stable and practical enough to work.
Aristotle classifies the constitutions …show more content…
Aristotle goes on to say there are three subdivisions in the right or ideal form of constitution. The first is kingship, this is when one man leads the government and acts in the common interest of society. The second division is aristocracy, this is if a few people run the government all sharing the same objective. Lastly is polity, this is when many people govern the state in the common interests of society. The corresponding divisions for the perverted forms of constitutions are firstly for one man leadership tyranny, rule of a few oligarchy and the rule of many is democracy. Aristotle ranks these six forms of constitutions in order from best to worst; kingship, aristocracy, polity, democracy, oligarchy, tyranny.
Kingship and tyranny both involve the rule of one man however they don’t share any other similarities. On one hand under kingship a king looks after the interests of his subjects and exercises his power on willing subjects based on law whereas tyranny is the opposite, a tyrant looks after his own interests and exerts power through force on unwilling subjects. In Aristotle’s Book 3 Chapter 14, he outlines 5 different types of Kingship. The first of these is generalship, the power to exercise military command. The second type of …show more content…
Oligarchy is a system of government whereby the few wealthy people rule the country. Here too there are different kinds of oligarchy, the first is where there is a property qualification. This property qualification is not high but means that only those who acquire property can have a share in government. Since there are numerous sharers in government the law must be supreme. The second sort is when the qualification for a share in government is high and the absence is addressed by the process of co-option. They can adjust the laws to their favour but are not strong enough to rule without the law. The third type of oligarchy occurs when the governing class retain their power because the law decrees that the son shall exceed the father. The problem with this type of government is that it allows the rich to act in their own interests and become richer and more powerful whilst leaving no room for the poor to improve on the quality of their life. Subsequently the growing disparity between the rich and poor leads to class conflict. Therefore Aristotle argues, oligarchy is not a practical form of constitution because it’ll always bread relationships of masters and slaves, one group loathing and the other
Aristotle classifies the constitutions …show more content…
Aristotle goes on to say there are three subdivisions in the right or ideal form of constitution. The first is kingship, this is when one man leads the government and acts in the common interest of society. The second division is aristocracy, this is if a few people run the government all sharing the same objective. Lastly is polity, this is when many people govern the state in the common interests of society. The corresponding divisions for the perverted forms of constitutions are firstly for one man leadership tyranny, rule of a few oligarchy and the rule of many is democracy. Aristotle ranks these six forms of constitutions in order from best to worst; kingship, aristocracy, polity, democracy, oligarchy, tyranny.
Kingship and tyranny both involve the rule of one man however they don’t share any other similarities. On one hand under kingship a king looks after the interests of his subjects and exercises his power on willing subjects based on law whereas tyranny is the opposite, a tyrant looks after his own interests and exerts power through force on unwilling subjects. In Aristotle’s Book 3 Chapter 14, he outlines 5 different types of Kingship. The first of these is generalship, the power to exercise military command. The second type of …show more content…
Oligarchy is a system of government whereby the few wealthy people rule the country. Here too there are different kinds of oligarchy, the first is where there is a property qualification. This property qualification is not high but means that only those who acquire property can have a share in government. Since there are numerous sharers in government the law must be supreme. The second sort is when the qualification for a share in government is high and the absence is addressed by the process of co-option. They can adjust the laws to their favour but are not strong enough to rule without the law. The third type of oligarchy occurs when the governing class retain their power because the law decrees that the son shall exceed the father. The problem with this type of government is that it allows the rich to act in their own interests and become richer and more powerful whilst leaving no room for the poor to improve on the quality of their life. Subsequently the growing disparity between the rich and poor leads to class conflict. Therefore Aristotle argues, oligarchy is not a practical form of constitution because it’ll always bread relationships of masters and slaves, one group loathing and the other