“ for the instruments of any art are never unlimited, either in number or size, and riches may be defined as a number of instruments to be used in a household or in a state. ”
Aristotle, Politics (4th century BC). copy citation
| Author | Aristotle |
|---|---|
| Source | Politics |
| Topic | art state |
| Date | 4th century BC |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Benjamin Jowett |
| Weblink | http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/politics.html |
Context
“for the amount of property which is needed for a good life is not unlimited, although Solon in one of his poems says that
"No bound to riches has been fixed for man. "
But there is a boundary fixed, just as there is in the other arts; for the instruments of any art are never unlimited, either in number or size, and riches may be defined as a number of instruments to be used in a household or in a state. And so we see that there is a natural art of acquisition which is practiced by managers of households and by statesmen, and what is the reason of this.
Part IX
There is another variety of the art of acquisition which is commonly and rightly called an art of wealth-getting, and has in fact suggested the notion that riches and property have no limit.”
source
