Aristotle was Plato’s young prodigy and became a philosopher in his own right. His most infamous pupil was Alexander the Great, but his impact superseded Alexander. We credit Aristotle for multiple advances in science, meteorology, philosophy, and political/government theory. This essay will dissect that last topic—Aristotle’s three types of government, their perversions, and how to mitigate tyranny.
The first type of government is a kingdom. It is when one man rules selflessly and for everyone’s betterment. A good king disregards his well-being. Most importantly, he is just and impartial. However, that description might sound ludicrous compared to most tyrants, which brings us to the perversion of tyranny. When a king doesn’t exercise the qualities necessary of a king (impartiality and justice) and advances the interests of some—usually including himself—at the expense of others, the kingdom becomes a tyranny.
The second type of government is an aristocracy, the rulership of a few. Aristocracies are a page out of Plato’s handbook. He believed a few people should be selected and educated to rule from a young age. In this scenario, the “best” and wisest class rules. Similar to a king, they lead the nation impartially and with justice. The moment aristocrats abandon that standard and advance their class’ interests at the expense of others, it becomes an oligarchy. Almost all aristocracies inevitably become oligarchies that plunder the poor for class enrichment.
The prior government consisted of a few ruling many. In that scenario, the few often pervert their power. In retaliation, polities form. That is the third type of government. A polity is when all the poor rule to prevent tyranny and oligarchy. Unfortunately, that seemingly innocent concept evolves into a perverted democracy when the poor use their power—once again—to plunder the wealthy and enrich themselves. The irony is that many Americans openly admit that is their objective when they say, “Tax the rich!” while eating off welfare programs funded by taxes. It doesn’t matter which class you are; plunder is plunder. And plunder, according to Aristotle, is wrong.
Unlike his mentor Plato, Aristotle didn’t provide any ideal government to solve each perversion. Instead, he believed that aristocracies and polities could work with one condition: An abundant middle class. He argued there would be balance if the middle class outnumbered the wealthy and the poor. The middle class opposes plunder; the middle class has common sense.
Asher Sisneros 