Abstract

Although Plato and Aristotle in their own way share the conviction that social control and individual freedom should go hand in hand, they both are obviously quite unfamiliar with the modern idea of private initiative being required for progress. According to them there are fixed and ascertainable norms of human virtue, which, if observed, do ensure that men flourish, however, if ignored, do leave them in misery. For certain prudential reasons (although different in either case), Plato and Aristotlefavour the notion of authority, over and as opposed to the individual, in elaborate hierarchical forms. If in general the author succeeds to posit clearly where Plato and Aristotle fall on the spectrum between authoritarianism and individualism, in detail he considers the picture to be a mixed one, one which restrains him from trying to be too exact