SUBSTANTIAL CITY: REFLECTIONS ON ARISTOTLE'S POLITICS

Minimally, Aristotle's account of the 'city' (polls) is isomorphic with his metaphysical doctrine of substance (ousia) and teleological conception of nature. Maximally, his political theory depends on it. Part 1 explains what this means. Part II discusses the significant consequences the notion of a 'substantial city' has for Aristotle's political theory. Part III suggests how this notion can be deployed to address the notorious question of whether the Politics forms a unified whole, or whether Books 4, 5 and 6 - the 'realist' or empirical books - simply cannot be reconciled with Books 1, 2, 3, 7 and 8, the more 'idealist' or even 'Platonist' side of the work.