§1.1252aἐπειδὴ πᾶσαν πόλιν ὁρῶμεν κοινωνίαν τινὰ οὖσαν καὶ πᾶσαν κοινωνίαν ἀγαθοῦ τινος ἕνεκεν συνεστηκυῖαν (τοῦ γὰρ εἶναι δοκοῦντος ἀγαθοῦ χάριν πάντα πράττουσι πάντες), δῆλον ὡς πᾶσαι μὲν ἀγαθοῦ τινος στοχάζονται, μάλιστα δὲ καὶ τοῦ κυριωτάτου πάντων ἡ πασῶν κυριωτάτη καὶ πάσας περιέχουσα τὰς ἄλλας.
Since we see that every city-state is a sort of community, and that every community is established for the sake of some good (for everyone does everything for the sake of what seems to be good), it is clear that while all communities aim at some good, the one that is the most authoritative of all and embraces all the others aims at this good most of all, and at the most authoritative good of all.
αὕτη δʼ ἐστὶν ἡ καλουμένη πόλις καὶ ἡ κοινωνία ἡ πολιτική.
And this is what is called the city-state, and the political community.
ὅσοι μὲν οὖν οἴονται πολιτικὸν καὶ βασιλικὸν καὶ οἰκονομικὸν καὶ δεσποτικὸν εἶναι τὸν αὐτὸν οὐ καλῶς λέγουσιν (πλήθει γὰρ καὶ ὀλιγότητι νομίζουσι διαφέρειν ἀλλʼ οὐκ εἴδει τούτων ἕκαστον, οἷον ἂν μὲν ὀλίγων, δεσπότην, ἂν δὲ πλειόνων, οἰκονόμον, ἂν δʼ ἔτι πλειόνων, πολιτικὸν ἢ βασιλικόν, ὡς οὐδὲν διαφέρουσαν μεγάλην οἰκίαν ἢ μικρὰν πόλιν· καὶ πολιτικὸν δὲ καὶ βασιλικόν, ὅταν μὲν αὐτὸς ἐφεστήκῃ, βασιλικόν, ὅταν δὲ κατὰ τοὺς λόγους τῆς ἐπιστήμης τῆς τοιαύτης κατὰ μέρος ἄρχων καὶ ἀρχόμενος, πολιτικόν· ταῦτα δʼ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀληθῆ)·
Those who think that the statesman, the king, the household manager, and the master of slaves are the same person do not speak well (for they believe that each of these differs in the multitude or paucity of those ruled, and not in kind; for instance, if over few, a master, if over more, a household manager, and if over still more, a statesman or a king, as if a large household does not differ at all from a small city-state; and as for the statesman and the king, they think that when someone is himself in control, he is a king, but when he rules and is ruled in turn according to the principles of such a science, he is a statesman; but these things are not true).
δῆλον δʼ ἔσται τὸ λεγόμενον ἐπισκοποῦσι κατὰ τὴν ὑφηγημένην μέθοδον.
But what is being said will be clear to those who examine it according to the guided method.
ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις τὸ σύνθετον μέχρι τῶν ἀσυνθέτων ἀνάγκη διαιρεῖν (ταῦτα γὰρ ἐλάχιστα μόρια τοῦ παντός), οὕτω καὶ πόλιν ἐξ ὧν σύγκειται σκοποῦντες ὀψόμεθα καὶ περὶ τούτων μᾶλλον, τί τε διαφέρουσιν ἀλλήλων καὶ εἴ τι τεχνικὸν ἐνδέχεται λαβεῖν περὶ ἕκαστον τῶν ῥηθέντων.
For just as in other matters it is necessary to divide a composite whole down to its uncompounded parts (for these are the smallest elements of the whole), so also, by examining the city-state from the elements of which it is composed, we shall see more clearly concerning these elements both how they differ from one another and whether it is possible to acquire any scientific understanding concerning each of the roles mentioned.
εἰ δή τις ἐξ ἀρχῆς τὰ πράγματα φυόμενα βλέψειεν, ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις, καὶ ἐν τούτοις κάλλιστʼ ἂν οὕτω θεωρήσειεν.
If, then, one should look at things growing from their origin, just as in other matters, so also in these would one best contemplate them.
ἀνάγκη δὴ πρῶτον συνδυάζεσθαι τοὺς ἄνευ ἀλλήλων μὴ δυναμένους εἶναι, οἷον θῆλυ μὲν καὶ ἄρρεν τῆς γενέσεως ἕνεκεν (καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐκ προαιρέσεως, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις ζῴοις καὶ φυτοῖς φυσικὸν τὸ ἐφίεσθαι, οἷον αὐτό, τοιοῦτον καταλιπεῖν ἕτερον), ἄρχον δὲ καὶ ἀρχόμενον φύσει, διὰ τὴν σωτηρίαν.
It is necessary, first, that those who cannot exist without each other must pair together, such as female and male for the sake of generation (and this not from choice, but just as in other animals and plants, it is natural to desire to leave behind another such as oneself), and by nature ruler and ruled, for the sake of preservation.
τὸ μὲν γὰρ δυνάμενον τῇ διανοίᾳ προορᾶν ἄρχον φύσει καὶ δεσπόζον φύσει, τὸ δὲ δυνάμενον τῷ σώματι ταῦτα πονεῖν ἀρχόμενον καὶ φύσει δοῦλον· διὸ δεσπότῃ καὶ δούλῳ ταὐτὸ συμφέρει.
For that which is able by its intellect to foresee is by nature ruler and by nature master, while that which is able by its body to labor at these things is ruled and by nature a slave; hence the same thing is beneficial for both master and slave.
§1.1252bφύσει μὲν οὖν διώρισται τὸ θῆλυ καὶ τὸ δοῦλον (οὐθὲν γὰρ ἡ φύσις ποιεῖ τοιοῦτον οἷον οἱ χαλκοτύποι τὴν Δελφικὴν μάχαιραν, πενιχρῶς, ἀλλʼ ἓν πρὸς ἕν· οὕτω γὰρ ἂν ἀποτελοῖτο κάλλιστα τῶν ὀργάνων ἕκαστον, μὴ πολλοῖς ἔργοις ἀλλʼ ἑνὶ δουλεῦον)·
By nature, then, the female and the slave are distinguished (for nature makes nothing in a stingy manner, like the blacksmiths who make the Delphic knife, but rather one thing for one purpose; for in this way each of the instruments would be fashioned in the finest manner, serving not many tasks but one); but among barbarians, the female and the slave have the same rank.
ἐν δὲ τοῖς βαρβάροις τὸ θῆλυ καὶ τὸ δοῦλον τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει τάξιν. αἴτιον δʼ ὅτι τὸ φύσει ἄρχον οὐκ ἔχουσιν, ἀλλὰ γίνεται ἡ κοινωνία αὐτῶν δούλης καὶ δούλου.
And the cause is that they do not possess that which by nature rules, but their community becomes one of a female slave and a male slave.
διό φασιν οἱ ποιηταὶ
"
βαρβάρων δʼ Ἕλληνας ἄρχειν εἰκός,
"
ὡς ταὐτὸ φύσει βάρβαρον καὶ δοῦλον ὄν.
Therefore, the poets say: "It is fitting for Greeks to rule barbarians," as if barbarian and slave are by nature the same thing.
ἐκ μὲν οὖν τούτων τῶν δύο κοινωνιῶν οἰκία πρώτη, καὶ ὀρθῶς Ἡσίοδος εἶπε ποιήσας
"
οἶκον μὲν πρώτιστα γυναῖκά τε βοῦν τʼ ἀροτῆρα· "
ὁ γὰρ βοῦς ἀντʼ οἰκέτου τοῖς πένησίν ἐστιν.
From these two communities, then, arises the first household, and Hesiod spoke rightly when he wrote: "First of all a house, and a wife, and an ox for plowing;" for the ox is in place of a servant for the poor.
ἡ μὲν οὖν εἰς πᾶσαν ἡμέραν συνεστηκυῖα κοινωνία κατὰ φύσιν οἶκός ἐστιν, οὓς Χαρώνδας μὲν καλεῖ ὁμοσιπύους, Ἐπιμενίδης δὲ ὁ Κρὴς ὁμοκάπους· ἡ δʼ ἐκ πλειόνων οἰκιῶν κοινωνία πρώτη χρήσεως ἕνεκεν μὴ ἐφημέρου κώμη.
Therefore, the community established according to nature for everyday life is the household, whose members Charondas calls "companions of the meal-bin," and Epimenides the Cretan calls "companions of the manger." And the first community composed of several households for the sake of non-daily needs is the village.
μάλιστα δὲ κατὰ φύσιν ἔοικεν ἡ κώμη ἀποικία οἰκίας εἶναι, οὓς καλοῦσί τινες ὁμογάλακτας,. διὸ καὶ τὸ πρῶτον ἐβασιλεύοντο αἱ πόλεις, καὶ νῦν ἔτι τὰ ἔθνη· ἐκ βασιλευομένων γὰρ συνῆλθον·
Most of all, the village seems according to nature to be an offshoot of a household, whose members some call "suckled on the same milk." And this is why city-states were at first ruled by kings, and even now nations are; for they came together from those who were ruled by kings.
πᾶσα γὰρ οἰκία βασιλεύεται ὑπὸ τοῦ πρεσβυτάτου, ὥστε καὶ αἱ ἀποικίαι, διὰ τὴν συγγένειαν.
For every household is ruled by its eldest, so that the offshoots also were, because of their kinship.
καὶ τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ὃ λέγει Ὅμηρος
"
θεμιστεύει δὲ ἕκαστος
παίδων ἠδʼ ἀλόχων. "
σποράδες γάρ· καὶ οὕτω τὸ ἀρχαῖον ᾤκουν.
And this is what Homer says: "And each one gives law to his children and wives." For they were scattered; and that is how they lived in ancient times.
καὶ τοὺς θεοὺς δὲ διὰ τοῦτο πάντες φασὶ βασιλεύεσθαι, ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ μὲν ἔτι καὶ νῦν οἱ δὲ τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἐβασιλεύοντο, ὥσπερ δὲ καὶ τὰ εἴδη ἑαυτοῖς ἀφομοιοῦσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι, οὕτω καὶ τοὺς βίους τῶν θεῶν.
And for this reason, everyone says that the gods also are ruled by a king, because they themselves (some even now, and others in ancient times) were ruled by kings; and just as humans assimilate the forms of the gods to themselves, so also they do their lives.
ἡ δʼ ἐκ πλειόνων κωμῶν κοινωνία τέλειος πόλις, ἤδη πάσης ἔχουσα πέρας τῆς αὐταρκείας ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, γινομένη μὲν τοῦ ζῆν ἕνεκεν, οὖσα δὲ τοῦ εὖ ζῆν.
And the community composed of several villages is the complete city-state, which has now reached the limit of complete self-sufficiency, so to speak, coming into being for the sake of living, but existing for the sake of living well.
διὸ πᾶσα πόλις φύσει ἔστιν, εἴπερ καὶ αἱ πρῶται κοινωνίαι.
Therefore every city-state exists by nature, if indeed the first communities also do.
τέλος γὰρ αὕτη ἐκείνων, ἡ δὲ φύσις τέλος ἐστίν· οἷον γὰρ ἕκαστόν ἐστι τῆς γενέσεως τελεσθείσης, ταύτην φαμὲν τὴν φύσιν εἶναι ἑκάστου, ὥσπερ ἀνθρώπου ἵππου οἰκίας.
For this is the end of those, and nature is an end; for what each thing is when its growth is completed, this we say is the nature of each, such as of a human, a horse, a household.
ἔτι τὸ οὗ ἕνεκα καὶ τὸ τέλος βέλτιστον·
Furthermore, that for the sake of which and the end is the best;