Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
Two Bodies
Aristotle—in his typical, gung-ho Aristotelian way—juxtaposes the concept of the city or nation with the individual person from the very beginning of Ethics.
Why? He wants to put these two "bodies" together so that we can see how the health of one is closely connected with that of the other…and also so that we understand that no matter how sovereign a state we think a person is, the common good is always greater. In other words, no man—even a man living on an idyllic Greek isle—is an island:
For even if this is the same thing for an individual and a city, to secure and preserve the good of the city appears to be something greater and more complete: the good of the individual by himself is certainly desirable enough, but that of a nation and of cities is nobler and more divine. (1.3.1094b10)
If you had to read that paragraph more than once, Shmoopers, you're not alone. We, not to mention scholars throughout the ages, have had to read Aristotle line by line, and over and over.
Here's what he's saying: sameness between the individual and the city is a reflection of the macrocosm ("macrocosm" means "great world," in this case, the city or nation) in the microcosm ("microcosm" means "little world," like individuals within the city).
Because these two things have similarities, it's hard to decide who's going to lose out if it comes down to brass tacks. But it's not that hard.
When Good Cities (People) Go Wrong
Aristotle further develops the parallel between the city and the individual, making the likeness between the two even more likeness-y. Here, he says that a person who lacks self-restraint,
...is like a city that votes for all that it ought to vote for and has serious laws, yet it makes use of none of them...But the wicked person [is like a city that] makes use of the laws, though the laws it uses are wicked. (7.10.1152a19-24)
This political simile reminds us that a failure of the rational soul is basically a problem of poor governance within a person—which is kind of like what happens in civic life when laws are ignored. If you can't govern yourself? Mayhem. If you can't govern a city? You got it: mayhem.
A wicked person is like a corrupt government, since he'll use flawed logic to reason his way to his desired ends. It's like this: if you want to eat an entire cake (bad idea) you'll usually come up with some pretty good justifications, like "But I haven't had any cake this week!" or "But starting tomorrow I won't have any cake for, like, a month!"
Similarly, a corrupt politician is rarely going to be twisting his villain moustache and rubbing his hands together gleefully. He's way more likely to think "But it's for the good of the city!" or "No one should have more power than me because I'm so smart!"
Basically, because of poor governance—which means flawed reasoning—a person or a city can become bodies that operate from faulty rulebooks. And that's no bueno.
So maybe the next time you're tempted to use the old chestnut "My body is a temple," think of Aristotle and say, "My body is a city or nation-state." (No one but your fellow Aristotle-lovers will know what you're talking about, but we bet you'll feel pretty learned.)