Lucio Bertelli

Among the aristotelian works which have been passed on to posterity there isn’t one specifically dedicated to the description of the man of politics : little can be said of the lost dialogue Politikós. In this choice Aristotle is very evidently in contrast with Plato who, in his political and philosophical theory, considered of great importance the doctrine of the man of politics. This research sets out to indicate a solution to this problem by analysing the Protrepticus and the passages of the two Ethics which refer to the man of politics and to the legislator. The analysis demonstrates that Aristotle, already in his early dialogue, favours the legislative function over the political function :this preference for the role of the nomothétês can be explained with reference to the importance Aristotle gives to law with a view to the education to virtue. However, the absence of a clear collocation of the man of politics in the more general field of political science leaves open the question of the addressee of the "architectural politics": this problem can only be solved by drawing on implicit references. The discussion on phrónêsis offers some explanation, even if in a doxographical form, of how Aristotle conceived the different levels of the political activity and the corresponding different types of politicians. Nonetheless these passages are always asides to the more general discussion on virtue.