Aristotle's Definition Of A Citizen Essay

Aristotle is considered to be one of the most influential philosophers in many subjects; one of these subjects being political theory. He has influenced the way we run our government and how politicians think. His works and opinions still continue to greatly influence our current government in a large amount of ways. His contributions to our government are very prominent, but he is often not credited. Even though his ideas did not create an instant effect, his beliefs slowly established a spot in today's society.

Aristotle was born in 384 BC in Northern Greece. There is not much information about his childhood but what is known is that his father was a physician to the King of Macedonia which led to Aristotle’s connections within the Macedonian

monarchy (www.wikipedia.com). He moved to Athens at the age of eighteen and studied at Plato’s Academy for approximately twenty years until leaving due to his disappointment with the Academy after Plato had died.
He eventually became a personal tutor to three future kings which is the reason he became so well known. Due to his popularity, Aristotle was able to create a school to teach his ideas and beliefs in subjects such as philosophy, science, psychology and many more. He died at age 62 in Euboea, Greece.
Aristotle strongly believed that the well-being and happiness for all citizens comes first but, his definition of citizen is not the same as our society’s definition of a citizen.

He defines a citizen as “a person who has the right (exousia) to participate in deliberative or judicial office (1275b18–21)” (www.plato.stanford.edu). This definition, which was taken from Aristotle’s book, Politics: Book III, excludes women, children and slaves.

In our government, we do believe that the people come first, but, we do not exclude any type of person from our definition of a citizen. As long as the person is legally in the United States, they are considered a citizen.

Aristotle’s definition gave our government an example of how to not define a citizen; also, it helped us shape our idea of what a citizen should be. Even though this might be a difference our government has from Aristotle’s beliefs, he influenced our government to use the idea of citizen’s happiness being most important.

Aristotle also claimed that “a citizen is not a citizen because he lives in a certain place; nor is he a citizen who has no legal right except that of suing and being sued; for this right may be enjoyed under the provisions of a treaty” (www.scholardarity.com). Our government does fully follow this

statement.
We have immigrants that live in the United States, but, are not considered to be citizens. If an immigrant lives in the United States illegally, they are not considered a citizen. To become a citizen in the United States, you must pass certain requirements and take a test. Even though their home is in the country, their home does not decide their citizenship. The test and requirements decide their citizenship.
In the United States, the government gives everyone the right to sue in court. Even though they might be an illegal immigrant, they are allowed to sue an official citizen or another illegal immigrant. This usually is not very common because it puts immigrants at high risk of getting caught and possibly deported from the country. Our government did take after Aristotle in this way by requiring a clearance of citizenship and the ability for anyone to sue.