Book 7 / Chapter 9
Paragraph 2 - Strong-headedness and Its Differences from Continence
Explanation - Part By Part
"There are some who are apt to abide by their opinion, who are called strong-headed, viz. those who are hard to persuade in the first instance and are not easily persuaded to change; these have in them something like the continent man, as the prodigal is in a way like the liberal man and the rash man like the confident man; but they are different in many respects."
Aristotle talks about people who are very stubborn in sticking to their opinions, often referred to as "strong-headed." These individuals are tough to convince initially and resistant to changing their minds. While this might make them seem somewhat similar to a "continent man" (someone who resists their impulses and acts according to reason), there’s a key difference. Aristotle compares these relationships to how a "prodigal" (someone who wastes resources) might share surface similarities with a "liberal man" (someone generous with wealth), or how a "rash man" (reckless and careless) might resemble a "confident man" (brave and composed). Despite some overlapping traits, their core motivations and behaviors make them very distinct.
"For it is to passion and appetite that the one will not yield, since on occasion the continent man will be easy to persuade; but it is to argument that the others refuse to yield, for they do form appetites and many of them are led by their pleasures."
This part is contrasting two types of people: those who are primarily led by passion and appetite (desires or impulses) versus those who resist persuasion for different reasons. Aristotle is saying that the continent person can resist giving in to passion or appetite—they have self-control and don't easily yield to temptation. However, the continent person is still open to reasoning or argument if it makes sense; they can be persuaded if it's reasonable or right to be.
On the other hand, there are people who aren't led by their passions or appetites in the same way, but they are stubborn when it comes to arguments or ideas—they refuse to be persuaded even when they should be. They might form strong appetites for their own opinions or pleasures (like enjoying the act of "winning" an argument), which clouds their judgment. These stubborn individuals aren't truly continent because their resistance isn't rooted in rational self-control but rather in a rigid, pleasure-driven mindset.
"Now the people who are strong-headed are the opinionated, the ignorant, and the boorish-the opinionated being influenced by pleasure and pain; for they delight in the victory they gain if they are not persuaded to change, and are pained if their decisions become null and void as decrees sometimes do; so that they are liker the incontinent than the continent man."
This part is about people Aristotle refers to as "strong-headed," which today we might describe as stubborn or rigid in their beliefs. He identifies three types: the opinionated, the ignorant, and the boorish (crude or unrefined). Among these, he focuses on the opinionated, explaining that they cling to their views not because they've thoroughly thought them through, but because of the emotional satisfaction or discomfort tied to maintaining or changing them.
- The opinionated enjoy the sense of victory they feel when they refuse to change their minds, as if stubbornness is a personal triumph.
- On the other hand, they feel pain or discomfort when their views are invalidated or proven wrong, much like a decree being revoked.
From this, Aristotle concludes that these strong-headed people are more similar to the incontinent (those who lack self-control and give in to impulse) than to the continent (those who have self-control). This is because their attachment to their opinions is driven by emotions—pleasures and pains—rather than by reason or a love of truth.
In essence, Aristotle critiques stubbornness when it arises not from rational conviction, but from a self-focused desire to "win" or avoid the discomfort of admitting error.