Book 3 / Chapter 3
Paragraph 1 - The Scope of Deliberation
Explanation - Part By Part
"Do we deliberate about everything, and is everything a possible subject of deliberation, or is deliberation impossible about some things? We ought presumably to call not what a fool or a madman would deliberate about, but what a sensible man would deliberate about, a subject of deliberation."
Aristotle begins by asking whether we can deliberate about absolutely anything or if there are limits to what is worth deliberating about. He clarifies that not everything is a legitimate subject for deliberation. He emphasizes the idea of reasonableness—that proper deliberation is something a sensible and rational person would engage in, not the irrational musings of a fool or someone disconnected from reality. Essentially, deliberation involves careful, rational thought about things that are within our control and worth thinking about.
"Now about eternal things no one deliberates, e.g. about the material universe or the incommensurability of the diagonal and the side of a square. But no more do we deliberate about the things that involve movement but always happen in the same way, whether of necessity or by nature or from any other cause, e.g. the solstices and the risings of the stars; nor about things that happen now in one way, now in another, e.g. droughts and rains; nor about chance events, like the finding of treasure."
Aristotle is exploring what it means to deliberate and what topics are actually suitable for deliberation. He points out that there are things we simply don’t deliberate about because they are outside the scope of our control or influence. For example, we don’t deliberate about "eternal things," like the basic structure of the universe or mathematical truths (like the result of the diagonal of a square being incommensurable with its side). These are fixed realities that humans cannot change through action or decision.
Similarly, we don’t deliberate about natural occurrences that happen in a consistent way due to necessity or natural laws—like the solstices, or the rising and setting of stars. These phenomena happen without our intervention. Furthermore, we don’t deliberate about irregular natural events, like droughts or rain, or completely random occurrences, like stumbling upon treasure. These are either beyond human control or purely matters of chance.
Essentially, his point is that deliberation is reserved for decisions where human effort and reasoning can make an impact. Contemplating things beyond human influence is a waste of focus because they lie outside the realm of our decision-making power.
"But we do not deliberate even about all human affairs; for instance, no Spartan deliberates about the best constitution for the Scythians. For none of these things can be brought about by our own efforts."
Aristotle is saying here that we don't spend time thinking deeply or planning (deliberating) about all aspects of human life or existence. For example, a Spartan (someone from Sparta) wouldn’t sit around trying to figure out or improve the political system of the Scythians (a completely different group of people). Why? Because that isn't something within their control or influence—it’s not something they could realistically act on or change through their own effort.
The broader point is that we focus our deliberation on things we can affect and make a difference in, rather than worrying about things that lie entirely outside our power.