PHL265H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: English Civil War, Early Modern Period, Materialism

• School: UTSG
• Department: Philosophy
• Course: PHL265H1
• Professor: Andrew Franklin- Hall

Document Summary

Part 3: aristotle, inequality and the middle class. Aristotle thinks that the middle class is the most likely to listen to reason. Those who are over-wealthy or over-poor nd it hard to follow the lead of reason. This is because those who are powerful are going to tend to be arrogant, leading them to various serious offences against the state. This is the reason the middle classes are the most reliable and likely the most virtuous. Aristotle thinks these difference are not innate but that they come from a particular station in life. You have two groups: those who only know how to obey (poor, those who are ignorant in how to obey and only know how to rule (rich, raised in extreme luxury) He is not concerned with unfairness but thinks that too much inequality will tear about the social fabric of society.