Book 5 / Chapter 9
Paragraph 5 - The Role of the Distributor in Justice
Explanation - Part By Part
"It is plain too that the distributor acts unjustly, but not always the man who has the excessive share; for it is not he to whom what is unjust appertains that acts unjustly, but he to whom it appertains to do the unjust act voluntarily, i.e. the person in whom lies the origin of the action, and this lies in the distributor, not in the receiver."
Here, Aristotle is clarifying that the blame for unjust actions depends on who intentionally initiates the wrongdoing. In the case of distributing goods or resources unfairly, the person who is responsible for making the decision (the distributor) is the one acting unjustly. The receiver, even if they end up with more than their fair share, isn’t necessarily acting unjustly because they didn’t actively choose to create the unfair situation. In other words, the distributor is the one with the conscious will and authority to commit the unjust act, so the moral responsibility falls on them.
"Again, since the word 'do' is ambiguous, and there is a sense in which lifeless things, or a hand, or a servant who obeys an order, may be said to slay, he who gets an excessive share does not act unjustly, though he 'does' what is unjust."
Aristotle is emphasizing the complexity of the concept of "doing" something unjust. He’s pointing out that just because someone is involved in an unjust situation or benefits from something unfair, it doesn’t automatically mean they acted unjustly. For instance, in the case of someone who receives an excessive share of something, they might be involved in an unfair outcome, but they didn’t necessarily cause it or choose it—so they don’t bear the responsibility for the injustice.
To illustrate this, Aristotle uses examples like lifeless objects, a person's hand, or even a servant following orders. These can technically "do" something (like slay someone), but they aren’t the source of the decision or the intent behind the action. The person or cause behind the act is the one who carries the responsibility. Similarly, in the case of unfair distribution, it’s the distributor—the person making the decision—who is acting unjustly, not necessarily the one who ends up with the excessive share.