[''Όπως ο Πλάτων, υποστηρίζει την ηθική αξία της μουσικής και εξετάζει λεπτομερειακά τη σημασία της στην εκπαίδευση των νέων (Πολιτικά Η', 1339Α-1342Β, V, 3-VII, 11). Ο Αριστοτέλης αναλύει τρεις απόψεις για την αποστολή της μουσικής και το σκοπό για τον οποίο πρέπει να διδάσκεται στους νέους ("τίνος δει χάριν μετέχειν αυτής"):
(α) "παιδιάς ένεκα και αναπαύσεως" (για ευχαρίστηση [ψυχαγωγία] και ανάπαυση).
(β) "προς αρετήν τι τείνειν την μουσικήν... και το ήθος ποιόν τι ποιείν" (γιατί μπορεί να ασκήσει ευεργετική επίδραση στη διαμόρφωση του χαρακτήρα).
(γ) "προς διαγωγήν...και προς φρόνησιν" (γιατί μπορεί να συμβάλει στη διανοητική και αισθητική απόλαυση και καλλιέργεια). Ο Αριστοτέλης ακολουθεί την ίδια γραμμή σκέψης, όπως και ο Πλάτων, οι απόψεις του όμως είναι πιο φιλελεύθερες και λιγότερο αλύγιστες.'']
Aristotle, Politics
Πολιτικά Η', 1339Α-1342Β
Aristot. Pol. 8.1339a
περὶ δὲ μουσικῆς ἔνια μὲν διηπορήκαμεν τῷ λόγῳ καὶ πρότερον, καλῶς δ᾽ ἔχει καὶ νῦν ἀναλαβόντας αὐτὰ προαγαγεῖν, ἵνα ὥσπερ ἐνδόσιμον γένηται τοῖς λόγοις οὓς ἄν τις εἴπειεν ἀποφαινόμενος περὶ αὐτῆς. οὔτε γὰρ τίνα [15] ἔχει δύναμιν ῥᾴδιον περὶ αὐτῆς διελεῖν, οὔτε τίνος δεῖ χάριν μετέχειν αὐτῆς, πότερον παιδιᾶς ἕνεκα καὶ ἀναπαύσεως, καθάπερ ὕπνου καὶ μέθης (ταῦτα γὰρ καθ᾽ αὑτὰ μὲν οὐδὲ τῶν σπουδαίων, ἀλλ᾽ ἡδέα, καὶ ἀναπαύει μέριμναν, ὥς φησιν Εὐριπίδης: διὸ καὶ τάττουσιν αὐτὴν καὶ [20] χρῶνται πᾶσι τούτοις ὁμοίως, ὕπνῳ καὶ μέθῃ καὶ μουσικῇ: τιθέασι δὲ καὶ τὴν ὄρχησιν ἐν τούτοις), ἢ μᾶλλον οἰητέον πρὸς ἀρετήν τι τείνειν τὴν μουσικήν, ὡς δυναμένην, καθάπερ ἡ γυμναστικὴ τὸ σῶμα ποιόν τι παρασκευάζει, καὶ τὴν μουσικὴν τὸ ἦθος ποιόν τι ποιεῖν, ἐθίζουσαν δύνασθαι χαίρειν [25] ὀρθῶς, ἢ πρὸς διαγωγήν τι συμβάλλεται καὶ πρὸς φρόνησιν (καὶ γὰρ τοῦτο τρίτον θετέον τῶν εἰρημένων). ὅτι μὲν οὖν δεῖ τοὺς νέους μὴ παιδιᾶς ἕνεκα παιδεύειν, οὐκ ἄδηλον (οὐ γὰρ παίζουσι μανθάνοντες: μετὰ λύπης γὰρ ἡ μάθησις): ἀλλὰ μὴν οὐδὲ διαγωγήν γε παισὶν ἁρμόττει [30] καὶ ταῖς ἡλικίαις ἀποδιδόναι ταῖς τοιαύταις (οὐθενὶ γὰρ ἀτελεῖ προσήκει τέλος). ἀλλ᾽ ἴσως ἂν δόξειεν ἡ τῶν παίδων σπουδὴ παιδιᾶς εἶναι χάριν ἀνδράσι γενομένοις καὶ τελειωθεῖσιν. ἀλλ᾽ εἰ τοῦτ᾽ ἐστὶ τοιοῦτον, τίνος ἂν ἕνεκα δέοι μανθάνειν αὐτούς, ἀλλὰ μή, καθάπερ οἱ τῶν Περσῶν καὶ [35] Μήδων βασιλεῖς, δι᾽ ἄλλων αὐτὸ ποιούντων μεταλαμβάνειν τῆς ἡδονῆς καὶ τῆς μαθήσεως; καὶ γὰρ ἀναγκαῖον βέλτιον ἀπεργάζεσθαι τοὺς αὐτὸ τοῦτο πεποιημένους ἔργον καὶ τέχνην τῶν τοσοῦτον χρόνον ἐπιμελουμένων ὅσον πρὸς μάθησιν μόνον. εἰ δὲ δεῖ τὰ τοιαῦτα διαπονεῖν αὐτούς, καὶ τὰ περὶ τὴν τῶν [40] ὄψων πραγματείαν αὐτοὺς ἂν δέοι παρασκευάζειν: ἀλλ᾽ ἄτοπον. τὴν δ᾽ αὐτὴν ἀπορίαν ἔχει καὶ εἰ δύναται τὰ ἤθη βελτίω ποιεῖν: ταῦτα γὰρ τί δεῖ μανθάνειν αὐτούς,
About music on the other hand we have previously raised some questions in the course of our argument, but it is well to take them up again and carry them further now, in order that this may give the key so to speak for the principles which one might advance in pronouncing about it. For it is not easy to say precisely what potency it possesses, nor yet for the sake of what object one should participate in it—whether for amusement and relaxation, as one indulges in sleep and deep drinking (for these in themselves are not serious pursuits but merely pleasant, and ‘relax our care,’ as Euripides says2; owing to which people actually class music with them and [20] employ all of these things, sleep, deep drinking and music, in the same way, and they also place dancing in the same class); or whether we ought rather to think that music tends in some degree to virtue (music being capable of producing a certain quality of character just as gymnastics are capable of producing a certain quality of body, music accustoming men to be able to rejoice rightly); or that it contributes something to intellectual entertainment3 and culture (for this must be set down as a third alternative among those mentioned). Now it is not difficult to see that one must not make amusement the object of the education of the young; for amusement does not go with learning—learning is a painful process. Nor yet moreover is it suitable to assign intellectual entertainment to boys and to the young; for a thing that is an end does not belong to anything that is imperfect. But perhaps it might be thought that the serious pursuits of boys are for the sake of amusement when they have grown up to be men. But, if something of this sort is the case, why should the young need to learn this accomplishment themselves, and not, like the Persian and Median kings, participate in the pleasure and the education of music by means of others performing it? for those who have made music a business and profession must necessarily perform better than those who practise only long enough to learn. But if it is proper for them to labor at accomplishments of this sort, then it would also be right for them to prepare the dishes of an elaborate cuisine; but this is absurd. And the same difficulty also arises as to the question whether learning music can improve their characters; for why should they learn to perform edifying music themselves,
1 i.e. compulsion to eat very large rations of prescribed food—the Greek way of training.
2 Eur. Ba. 378 (Bromios) ὃς τάδ᾽ ἔχει, θιασεύειν τε χόροις μετά τ᾽ αὐλῶν γελᾶσαι ἀναπαῦσαί τε μερίμνας
3 The term διαγωγή, ‘pastime,’ is idiomatically used of the pursuits of cultured leisure—serious conversation, music, the drama.
Aristotle. Aristotle in 23 Volumes, Vol. 21, translated by H. Rackham. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1944.
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0058:book=8:section=1339a
Aristotle. ed. W. D. Ross, Aristotle's Politica. Oxford, Clarendon Press. 1957.
