Alcune considerazioni sulla comprensione e sulla resa di φωνή e λόγος

Abstract

The present essay comments on a famous passage in Aristotle’s Politics discussing the meaning of φωνή and λόγος. Λόγος is often translated in Italian as ‘parola’ (‘word’) in this passage, but as ‘ragione’ (‘reason’) in other similar passages of the same work. The influence of the meaning attributed intuitively to φωνή, that is ‘voice’ in the modern sense could be an explanation for this phenomenon. An attempt is then made to return a meaning of φωνή closer to the original. Unlike λόγος, φωνή has been polarized. ‘Word’ and ‘reason’ are both translations of λόγος legitimized by long traditions.