"Politics" is a text by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. It consists of eight books (I: 1252a - 1260b, II: 1261a - 1274b, III: 1275a - 1288b, IV: 1289a - 1301b, V: 1301b - 1316b, VI: 1317a - 1323a, VII: 1323b - 1337a, VIII: 1337b - 1342b), and there is no doubt regarding the work's authenticity.

It is believed that Aristotle’s reflections on politics originated during his time as the tutor of Alexander the Great. He also composed two politically oriented works for Alexander, *The Colonists* and *On Monarchy*, which have been lost.

In Aristotelian philosophy, *Politics* is the science that aims at human happiness and is divided into ethics (concerned with individual happiness within the city) and politics proper (focused on the collective happiness of the city, or *polis*). Aristotle’s goal with "Politics" is to investigate forms of government and institutions capable of ensuring a happy life for citizens. Hence, politics falls within the practical sciences, those sciences that pursue knowledge as a means to action.

According to Aristotle:

"We see that every city is a kind of community, and every community is established for the sake of some good (the common good), since all the actions of all people are performed with a view to what they think is good; if all communities aim at this, it is evident that the most authoritative of all and that which includes all others aims most of all at this good, and this is called the city or the political community" (Pol., 1252a).

Books I, II, and III serve as introductions, covering topics such as the theory of the state and classifications of different types of constitutions; Books IV, V, and VI discuss political practice, the nature of various constitutions, and the principles that govern them; Books VII and VIII explore the ideal political structure, analyzing the makeup of the best city.