Aristotle (c. 384-322 BCE)
“Democracy arose from the idea that those who are equal in any respect are equal in any respect are equal absolutely. All are alike free, therefore they claim that they are all equal absolutely. Oligarchy arose from the assumption that those who are unequal in some one respect are completely unequal: being unequal in wealth they assume themselves to be unequal absolutely.”
- From Aristotle’s Politics (Bekker page 1301a), translated by T. A. Sinclair and revised by T. J. Saunders (Penguin Classics, 1962, 1981, 1992).
