The Political Animal :: essays research papers

Much time has been devoted to the study of how and why governments exist. This effort is required to understand America's political and philosophical roots. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle pursued and ultimately answered this question in his work, The Politics. Though written thousands of years ago, the lessons taught about the natural state of politics reveal the immensely complex system of an organized civil government in modern United States. Perhaps one of the most profound thoughts revealed in The Politics concerns the origin and nature of basic government, the cities. "Hence it is evident that a city is a natural production, and that man is naturally a political animal" (Aristotle 1253a). Aristotle's line from The Politics exemplifies two distinct but related points. The first part states that the formation of cities is natural and the second deals with the idea that man is by his own nature, a political being. At the beginning of The Politics, Aristotle says, "every city must be allowed to be the work of nature, if we admit that the original society between male and female is; for to this as their end all subordinate societies tend, and the end of everything is the nature of it"(1253b). Each city begins as a collection of partnerships. These associations are the Sugawara 2 bonds that men create between each other as a result of their natural tendency to be social and interact, "there is then in all persons a natural impetus to associate with each other" (1253a). Partnerships are natural because man is not inclined to be self-sufficient on his own merits. A man cannot exist merely for his own sake and expect to be a functioning member of the city but must be supplemented through the thoughts and ideas of other men. A man must experience interaction with others to more fully complete his existence. This supplementation is the essence of partnerships because dealing with other men increases each man's own wholeness. Furthermore, by listening to the thoughts and ideas of other men, he is furthering his own proclivity, enabling him to be active in the city and therefore, becoming a human being. It is only through the city, however, that man can truly be complete because it reaches a level of full self-sufficiency. The collection of partnerships that comprise the city makes men into complete human beings and assists them on their way to happiness, "the end and perfection of government: first founded that we might live, but continued that we may live happily"(1252b). This is a level of excellence for man because it means that he will not only survive but will thrive after becoming fully human and therefore happy.