Accattino, Paolo2019-09-252019-09-252012-11-122000http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12424/188226Scholars of aristotelian political philosophy generally agree that the project of the ideal polis of Politics VII – VIII is strictly linked to Ethics. They disagree however on the nature of the constitution outlined. It is broadly accepted that it is a "polity". In this paper I deal with the topic of aristocracy in aristotelian political thought and I show that, throughout Politics, Aristotle never swerved from the idea of aristocracy as the optimal constitution, where the truly virtuous rule. Finally I argue that the ideal polis of Politics VII – VIII, though it is never explicitly thus termed, is an aristocracy.itaWith permission of the license/copyright holderAristotleVirtue ethicsConstitutionPolitical ethicsMethods of ethicsPhilosophical ethicsArticle