The Politics, Aristotle's classic work on the nature of political community, has been a touchstone of Western debates about society and government. In this volume, Peter Simpson presents a complete philosophical commentary on the Politics, an analysis of the logical structure of the entire text and each of its constitutive arguments and conclusions. Unlike other contemporary works on the Politics, Simpson's philosophical commentary is not, save incidentally, a discussion of philological and historical questions, a speculative elaboration of Aristotle's arguments, or a comparison of the philosopher's ideas with those of other ancient and modern theorists. Such treatments, argues Simpson, must be grounded in a thorough understanding of the philosophical content of the work--a point that underscores the need for this thorough and accurate analysis. Keyed to the ancient Greek text as well as to Simpson's own innovative translation of it (UNC Press, 1997), this book will stand as a valuable commentary on the philosophical argument in the Politics and will serve as a sound basis for future study of Aristotle's political thought.

Offering the first complete translation into modern English of Aquinas' unfinished commentary on Aristotle's Politics, this translation follows the definitive Leonine text of Aquinas and reproduces in English those passages of William of Moerbeke's exacting yet elliptical translation of the Politics from which Aquinas worked. Bekker numbers have been added to passages from the Politics for easy reference. Students of the history of political thought will welcome this study of a great classic, a commentary by a student of Aristotle who is also a great political theorist in his own right.

In the most original interpretation of Aristotle's Politics in years, Michael Davis delivers many memorable and provocative formulations of Aristotle's messages concerning the constitutive tensions of political life. He traces the uncanny parallel between politics and philosophy in Aristotle, arguing that their connection is much deeper than it is ordinarily understood to be and that, for Aristotle, understanding either requires understanding the other. Davis presents his interpretation with a striking clarity and accessibility that makes the book a pleasure to read.

This book offers new translations of Aristotle’s Politics 5 and 6, accompanied by an introduction and commentary, targeted at historians and those who like to read political science in the context in which it was produced. Philosophical analysis remains essential and there is no intention to detract from the books as political theory, but the focus of this volume is the text as a crucial element in the discourse of fourth-century Greece, and the conflict throughout the Greek world between democracy, oligarchy, and the rise of the Macedonian monarchy.

The “groundbreaking translation” of the foundational text of Western political thought, now in a revised and expanded edition (History of Political Thought). Aristotle’s masterwork is the first systematic treatise on the science of politics. Carnes Lord’s lucid translation helped raise scholarly interest in the work and has served as the standard English edition for decades. Widely regarded as the most faithful to both the original Greek and Aristotle’s distinctive style, it is also written in clear, contemporary English. This new edition of the Politics retains and adds to Lord’s already extensive notes, clarifying the flow of Aristotle’s argument and identifying literary and historical references. A glossary defines key terms in Aristotle’s philosophical-political vocabulary. Lord has also made revisions to problematic passages throughout the translation in order to enhance both its accuracy and its readability. He has also substantially revised his introduction for the new edition, presenting an account of Aristotle’s life in relation to political events of his time; the character and history of his writings and of the Politics in particular; his overall conception of political science; and his impact on subsequent political thought from antiquity to the present. Further enhancing this new edition is an up-to-date selected bibliography.

With Aristotle’s Teaching in the “Politics,” Thomas L. Pangle offers a masterly new interpretation of this classic philosophical work. It is widely believed that the Politics originated as a written record of a series of lectures given by Aristotle, and scholars have relied on that fact to explain seeming inconsistencies and instances of discontinuity throughout the text. Breaking from this tradition, Pangle makes the work’s origin his starting point, reconceiving the Politics as the pedagogical tool of a master teacher. With the Politics, Pangle argues, Aristotle seeks to lead his students down a deliberately difficult path of critical thinking about civic republican life. He adopts a Socratic approach, encouraging his students—and readers—to become active participants in a dialogue. Seen from this perspective, features of the work that have perplexed previous commentators become perfectly comprehensible as artful devices of a didactic approach. Ultimately, Pangle’s close and careful analysis shows that to understand the Politics, one must first appreciate how Aristotle’s rhetorical strategy is inextricably entwined with the subject of his work.

The fine editions of the Aristotelian Commentary Series make available long out-of-print commentaries of St. Thomas on Aristotle. Each volume has the full text of Aristotle with Bekker numbers, followed by the commentary of St. Thomas, cross-referenced using an easily accessible mode of referring to Aristotle in the Commentary. Each volume is beautifully printed and bound using the finest materials. All copies are printed on acid-free paper and Smyth sewn. They will last.

Offering fresh interpretations of Aristotle's key work, this collection opens new paths for students and scholars to explore.

The first eighth of Aristotle's (384-322 BC) work of political philosophy.

Politics was one of the first books to investigate the concept of political philosophy and the starting point of political science studies as we know them. Written in the fourth century B.C.E., it explores how best to create political communities that support, serve, and improve citizens.