Politics

(for there is need of leisure both for the generation of virtue and for political activities). And since both the warrior element and that which deliberates concerning advantageous things and judges concerning just things are present and appear to be parts of the city in the highest degree, must these also be set as different, or are both to be assigned to the same individuals? And this also is clear: that in one way they are to be assigned to the same, but in another way to different individuals. For in so far as each of these tasks belongs to a different prime of life, and the one requires wisdom while the other strength, they must belong to different individuals; but in so far as it is impossible for those who have the power to compel and to prevent to tolerate being always in the position of subjects, in this way they must belong to the same. For those who are masters of the arms are also masters of whether the constitution remains or does not remain. It remains, therefore, to assign this constitution to both these groups of the same individuals, but not at the same time, but just as nature has designed strength to be in the younger and wisdom in the older, so it seems advantageous and just to distribute both tasks to both; for this division possesses what is according to merit. Moreover, possessions must also belong to these. For it is necessary for abundance to belong to the citizens, and these are the citizens. For the mechanical element does not share in the city, nor does any other class that is not a producer of virtue. And this is clear from the hypothesis; for happiness must necessarily exist together with virtue, and we must call a city happy not by looking at some part of it, but at all the citizens. And it is also clear that possessions must belong to these, if indeed it is necessary for the farmers to be slaves or barbarian serfs. There remains among those enumerated the class of priests. And their arrangement is also clear. For neither a farmer nor a mechanical artisan should be appointed priest (for it is fitting that the gods be honored by the citizens); and since the civic body has been divided into two parts, that is, the heavy-armed soldierly element and the deliberative element, and since it is fitting to render service to the gods and for those who have grown weary through time to find rest concerning them, it is to these that the priesthoods concerning them should be assigned. Of those things, then, without which a city is not constituted, and how many are parts of a city, has been said (for farmers, craftsmen, and the entire laboring element are necessary to cities, but the parts of the city are the soldierly element and the deliberative element); and indeed each of these has been separated, some permanently, others by turns. And it seems that it is not today nor recently that this has become known to those who philosophize about constitutions: that the city must be divided separately according to classes, and that the fighting element must be different from the farming element.