a man is not a thief, yet he stole, nor an adulterer, yet he committed adultery
 Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics (c. 334 BC - 330 BC). copy citation

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Author Aristotle
Source Nicomachean Ethics
Topic steal
Date c. 334 BC - 330 BC
Language English
Reference
Note Translated by W. D. Ross
Weblink http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.mb.txt

Context

“Surely the answer does not turn on the difference between these types. For a man might even lie with a woman knowing who she was, but the origin of his might be not deliberate choice but passion. He acts unjustly, then, but is not unjust; e.g. a man is not a thief, yet he stole, nor an adulterer, yet he committed adultery; and similarly in all other cases. Now we have previously stated how the reciprocal is related to the just; but we must not forget that what we are looking for is not only what is just without qualification but also political justice.” source