Compare and Contrast between the Politics and Theories of Plato and Research Paper

Compare and Contrast between the Politics and Theories of Plato and the Politics and theories of Aristotle, Mentioning the Simil - Research Paper Example It is a matter of more than passing interest that Plato and Aristotle are so closely tied - Aristotle having learned from Plato - since the two differ so fundamentally in many of their beliefs and theories despite the similarities that no doubt are attributable to their personal association. For the relationship between Plato and Aristotle was one of master and pupil, as with the relationship between Socrates and Plato. â€Å"Aristotle had sat at (Plato’s) feet, and listened to his lectures; nor could he, if had been pressed, have done otherwise than acknowledge Plato†¦for ‘his master in humanis,’ and pre-eminently in politicis† (Barker, v).1 Placed in a modern context, their beliefs concerning the state and the notion of ethics in politics resonate powerfully in the present. One need only dwell on the political (and personal) hubris that gave rise to the Watergate scandal and subsequent abuses of Constitutional power in the Reagan and both Bush admini strations. Politics, Plato believed, was inseparable from morality; for Aristotle, the symbiotic nature between state and citizen was based on the idea that Name 2 both sides act in the common good. The depredations of domineering and irresponsible states indicate that modern incarnations of government have veered far from Plato and Aristotle’s conceptions of the â€Å"good† city-state. As such, an examination of the similarities and differences between their theories is still instructive within the context of modern-day political and governmental ethics. For instance, Plato distrusted the rich, who tended to act in their own self- interest before that of the state, a concern that echoes in the recent destructive transgressions of Wall Street. However, countless examples have proven that Plato’s belief in a sole ruler, even a philosopher king (â€Å"enlightened† is, after all, a relative term) can never facilitate the participation of all classes – Aristotle’s mixed and participatory government, despite its flaws, allows for wise and informed individuals to become involved in the processes of government. Politics and government Sacrifice, specifically self-sacrifice, is a trait implied in the Aristotelian Democratic ideal. â€Å"Even if the end is the same for an individual and for a city-state, that of the city-state seems at any rate greater and more complete to attain and preserve. For although it is worthy to attain it for only an individual, it is nobler and more divine to do so for a nation or city-state† (Miller, 2011).2 As a shared morality, it would not be possible without the rationality and reason of the law, formalized in a constitution. Reason is one of Aristotle’s five suppositions of politics, a point upon which he and Plato concurred. â€Å"Aristotle agrees with Plato’s dictum that, whenever a system contains a rational element, it is appropriate for it to rule over the non-rationa l Name 3 part, because the rational element alone