Polis and Health

Despite asserting that the Whole is prior to the Parts, Aristotle offers no concept of the Highest Good of a Polis qua Whole.  He is certainly aware of Plato's two Holistic Political concepts--Justice and the collectivization of property--but restricts the former to individual citizens, and rejects the latter.  He also has, from the resources of his system, a third alternative--a writ large version of his concept of Organism.  On that basis, the Highest Good of the Polis is Health, consisting in the optimal functioning of each of its interdependent Parts, which entails optimal interdependence.  Health is thus the Highest Good of both the Whole and of its Parts, though a possibility apparently missed by Aristotle. In turn, all other structures are means to that end, and to be evaluated as such.