§4.1290aκἂν εἴ τι δὴ τοιοῦτον ἕτερον εἴρηται πόλεως εἶναι μέρος ἐν τοῖς περὶ τὴν ἀριστοκρατίαν· ἐκεῖ γὰρ διείλομεν ἐκ πόσων μερῶν ἀναγκαίων ἐστὶ πᾶσα πόλις· τούτων γὰρ τῶν μερῶν ὁτὲ μὲν πάντα μετέχει τῆς πολιτείας ὁτὲ δʼ ἐλάττω ὁτὲ δὲ πλείω.
And if indeed any other such thing has been said to be a part of a city in the discussions concerning aristocracy [we must so distinguish]; for there we distinguished from how many necessary parts every city is composed; for of these parts sometimes all participate in the constitution, and sometimes fewer, and sometimes more.
φανερὸν τοίνυν ὅτι πλείους ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι πολιτείας, εἴδει διαφερούσας ἀλλήλων· καὶ γὰρ ταῦτʼ εἴδει διαφέρει τὰ μέρη σφῶν αὐτῶν.
It is clear, therefore, that it is necessary that there are several constitutions, differing in species from one another; for indeed these parts themselves differ in species.
πολιτεία μὲν γὰρ ἡ τῶν ἀρχῶν τάξις ἐστί, ταύτας δὲ διανέμονται πάντες ἢ κατὰ τὴν δύναμιν τῶν μετεχόντων ἢ κατά τινʼ αὐτῶν ἰσότητα κοινήν, λέγω δʼ οἷον τῶν ἀπόρων ἢ τῶν εὐπόρων ἢ κοινήν τινʼ ἀμφοῖν.
For a constitution is the organization of offices, and all distribute these either according to the power of those who participate, or according to some common equality of them—I mean, for example, of the poor or of the wealthy, or some common equality of both.
ἀναγκαῖον ἄρα πολιτείας εἶναι τοσαύτας ὅσαι περ τάξεις κατὰ τὰς ὑπεροχάς εἰσι καὶ κατὰ τὰς διαφορὰς τῶν μορίων.
Necessarily, then, there are as many constitutions as there are organizations according to the superiorities and according to the differences of the parts.
μάλιστα δὲ δοκοῦσιν εἶναι δύο, καθάπερ ἐπὶ τῶν πνευμάτων λέγεται τὰ μὲν βόρεια τὰ δὲ νότια, τὰ δʼ ἄλλα τούτων παρεκβάσεις, οὕτω καὶ τῶν πολιτειῶν δύο, δῆμος καὶ ὀλιγαρχία.
But most of all there seem to be two, just as in the case of winds, some are said to be northern and others southern, and the others deviations from these, so also of constitutions there are two, democracy and oligarchy.
τὴν γὰρ ἀριστοκρατίαν τῆς ὀλιγαρχίας εἶδος τιθέασιν ὡς οὖσαν ὀλιγαρχίαν τινά, καὶ τὴν καλουμένην πολιτείαν δημοκρατίαν, ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς πνεύμασι τὸν μὲν ζέφυρον τοῦ βορέου, τοῦ δὲ νότου τὸν εὖρον.
For they place aristocracy as a species of oligarchy, as being a certain oligarchy, and the so-called "constitution" as a democracy, just as among the winds they place Zephyr under the north wind, and Eurus under the south wind.
ὁμοίως δʼ ἔχει καὶ περὶ τὰς ἁρμονίας, ὥς φασί τινες· καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖ τίθενται εἴδη δύο, τὴν δωριστὶ καὶ τὴν φρυγιστί, τὰ δʼ ἄλλα συντάγματα τὰ μὲν Δώρια τὰ δὲ Φρύγια καλοῦσιν.
And it is similar also concerning harmonies, as some say; for there too they set down two species, the Dorian and the Phrygian, and they call the other combinations either Dorian or Phrygian.
μάλιστα μὲν οὖν εἰώθασιν οὕτως ὑπολαμβάνειν περὶ τῶν πολιτειῶν· ἀληθέστερον δὲ καὶ βέλτιον ὡς ἡμεῖς διείλομεν, δυοῖν ἢ μιᾶς οὔσης τῆς καλῶς συνεστηκυίας τὰς ἄλλας εἶναι παρεκβάσεις, τὰς μὲν τῆς εὖ κεκραμένης τὰς δὲ τῆς ἀρίστης πολιτείας, ὀλιγαρχικὰς μὲν τὰς συντονωτέρας καὶ δεσποτικωτέρας, τὰς δʼ ἀνειμένας καὶ μαλακὰς δημοτικάς.
Now, indeed, they are mostly accustomed to conceive of constitutions in this way; but it is truer and better as we distinguished, that there being two or one well-constituted constitution, the others are deviations—some being of the well-blended, and others of the best constitution—the more tense and more despotic being oligarchic, and the relaxed and soft being democratic.
οὐ δεῖ δὲ τιθέναι δημοκρατίαν, καθάπερ εἰώθασί τινες νῦν, ἁπλῶς οὕτως, ὅπου κύριον τὸ πλῆθος (καὶ γὰρ ἐν ταῖς ὀλιγαρχίαις καὶ πανταχοῦ τὸ πλέον μέρος κύριον), οὐδʼ ὀλιγαρχίαν, ὅπου κύριοι ὀλίγοι τῆς πολιτείας.
And one must not define democracy, as some are accustomed to do now, simply in this way: where the multitude is sovereign (for indeed in oligarchies and everywhere the majority is sovereign), nor oligarchy as where a few are sovereign over the constitution.
εἰ γὰρ εἴησαν οἱ πάντες χίλιοι καὶ τριακόσιοι, καὶ τούτων οἱ χίλιοι πλούσιοι, καὶ μὴ μεταδιδοῖεν ἀρχῆς τοῖς τριακοσίοις καὶ πένησιν ἐλευθέροις οὖσι καὶ τἆλλα ὁμοίοις, οὐθεὶς ἂν φαίη δημοκρατεῖσθαι τούτους· ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ εἰ πένητες ὀλίγοι μὲν εἶεν, κρείττους δὲ τῶν εὐπόρων πλειόνων ὄντων, οὐδεὶς ἂν ὀλιγαρχίαν προσαγορεύσειεν οὐδὲ τὴν τοιαύτην, εἰ τοῖς ἄλλοις οὖσι πλουσίοις μὴ μετείη τῶν τιμῶν.
For if there were thirteen hundred in all, and of these, one thousand were rich, and they did not share office with the three hundred who were poor, yet being free men and equal in other respects, no one would say that these are democratically governed; and similarly also if the poor were few, but stronger than the wealthy, who were more numerous, no one would address such a state as an oligarchy either, if the others, who were wealthy, did not participate in honors.