ler and the ruled. Aristotle sees the state as a natural development, but he also sees it as a voluntary association of human beings based on the fact that man is a political animal and that people thus come together because of common interest to the degree that it contributes to the good life of each person:
The good life is indeed their chief end, both communally and individually; but they form and continue to maintain a political association for the sake of life itself.
This voluntary but necessary association is governed by the rule of law. At its center, Aristotle's ideal state, whatever its specific form of government, maintains its legitimacy by serving the good life for the people as a whole. Aristotle makes a distinction between the relationship of master over slave to that of ruler over the ruled in the state. The master acts for his own benefit and has the right
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