Musical education in Aristotle: its correspondence with the best life in the best regime

Abstract

Mousiké occupies a central place in the educational program that Aristotle designs for the best regime in Politics 7-8. In agreement with the contempt that the study of education in his work has traditionally received, academic literature (except for a few exceptions) neither recognizes the relevance of this discipline. However, mousiké is the cornerstone for understanding his practical thinking, since it is an essential part of his answer to the fundamental ethico-political questions posed at the beginning of Politics 7. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the philosophical importance of the program of musical education that Aristotle proposes in the framework of his reflection on the better life in the best regime, by investigating some correspondences that can be recognized between his political project and the musical curriculum he outlines.