But if so, there is a misapprehension of
the causes of the difference between them. For the real difference
between democracy and oligarchy is poverty and wealth. Wherever men
rule by reason of their wealth, whether they be few or many, that is
an oligarchy, and where the poor rule, that is a democracy. But as a
fact the rich are few and the poor many; for few are well-to-do,
whereas freedom is enjoyed by an, and wealth and freedom are the
grounds on which the oligarchical and democratical parties
respectively claim power in the state.
IX
Let us begin by considering the common definitions of oligarchy
and democracy, and what is justice oligarchical and democratical.
For all men cling to justice of some kind, but their conceptions are
imperfect and they do not express the whole idea. For example, justice
is thought by them to be, and is, equality, not. however, for however,
for but only for equals. And inequality is thought to be, and is,
justice; neither is this for all, but only for unequals. When the
persons are omitted, then men judge erroneously. The reason is that
they are passing judgment on themselves, and most people are bad
judges in their own case. And whereas justice implies a relation to
persons as well as to things, and a just distribution, as I have
already said in the Ethics, implies the same ratio between the persons
and between the things, they agree about the equality of the things,
but dispute about the equality of the persons, chiefly for the
reason which I have just given- because they are bad judges in their
own affairs; and secondly, because both the parties to the argument
are speaking of a limited and partial justice, but imagine
themselves to be speaking of absolute justice.
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