The Logos of the Wise in the Politeia of the Many: Recent Books on Aristotle's Political Philosophy

In: Political theory: an international journal of political philosophy, Volume 28, Issue 6, p. 835-860

Abstract

A review essay on books by (1) Fred D. Miller, Jr., Nature, Justice and Rights in Aristotle's Politics (Oxford, UK: Oxford U Press, 1995); (2) Aristotle, Politics, Books One and Two (Saunders, Trevor J. [Tr & Commentary] Oxford, UK: Oxford U Press, 1995); (3) Michael Davis, The Politics of Philosophy: A Commentary on Aristotle's Politics (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 1996); & (4) Aristide Tessitore, Reading Aristotle's Ethics (Albany: State U New York Press, 1996). Renewed interest in Aristotelian moral & political philosophy in the last decade has spawned a number of new texts that view Aristotle's political theory as a potential contributor to a realistic analysis of democratic institutions & a balanced assessment of democracy's potential. The four books here view Aristotle's approach less positively. They see in Aristotle a moral & political theory that is disconnected from contemporary democratic theory & challenges its priorities. Miller & Saunders approach Aristotle as analytic historians of philosophy & interpret his theory as a broad system to teach about political purpose & institutions. Davis & Tessitore view Aristotle's works as more complex in rhetoric & more esoteric. For these two authors, Aristotle confronts democratic theory & practice as a philosopher, not a statesman. The difference between these texts point out that three areas of inquiry into Aristotelian theory -- genre, theoretization, & pragmatics -- deserve further consideration. M. Pflum