arrangement the citizen body distributes office, either on the basis of the power of those who participate in it, or on the basis of some sort of general equality (i.e. the equality of the poor, or of the rich, or an equality existing among both rich and poor.) There must therefore be as many constitutions as there are modes of arranging the distribution of office according to the superiorities and the differences of the parts of the city" (Page 138). He believes that the organization of a state's constitution is directly related to the kinds of citizens that reside in the polis. The constitution has a direct root to the most powerful or most populated class. The middle class is where most of the power comes from because they are the majority, and therefore best reflect the common interest. The upper class is not fit to form the constitution because they, like the lower class, would base it on t heir own values and beliefs rather than the needs of the state. There are problems with the lower and upper classes creating laws. The lower class constantly feels that the government is cheating them out of something because they do not have the wealth, stature, and possibly education that the upper-class possesses, thereby making it difficult for them to work towards the common good. Aristotle thinks that the upper class has too much ambition, and would only create laws that would further their economic and social well-being with little or no regard to the rest of the population. These classes consist of self-interested individuals that want to further their own needs and concerns. They create factions in order to go against the system. "Factional conflict is the result of inequality, and the passion for equality is the root of faction" (Class Notes). The middle class acts as the mean between the concerns of the rich and poor. "Goodness itself consists in a mean; and in any city the middle class is a mean between the rich and the poor" (Page ...
