Ambition – philotimia (φιλοτιμία), love of honor. Sometimes we praise ambitious men, because they love honor more than others; and sometimes we blame them, because they love honor more than is right. Ambition is a strong motivator for both noble and shameful political action. So there must be an unnamed mean, an intermediate state for ambition, which is worthy of praise.

Aristotle doesn’t seem to expand further on the issue. Therefore, we may consider St. Augustine, Aquinas, Montaigne, Francis Bacon (not the painter). We will start with Bacon, which tackles ambition not from a psychological, but from a political perspective. It is the least interesting for our purposes, yet it is the shortest text; and there is no need to make any effort to find a good translator.

Ambition – choler, making a man active, earnest. If not controlled: venomous. If an ambitious man gets his desires blocked, frustration sets in, ambition turns inward and corrodes him. Ambitious men under one’s management should always progress, which is often impractical. When they fall, they drag their office down with them.

But sometimes it is necessary to employ ambitious men: commanders and soldiers are better when ambitious. As ambitious men climb up blindly, they don’t notice the dangers around them, or the consequences of their actions. Therefore, they take risks and shield their managers from danger, including the dangers from other ambitious men.

Honor can serve public good, provide access to power, or simply advance private fortune. A wise prince can discern which motive drives an ambitious man: service, vanity, or self-interest.

A man striving to excel among other strong, talented men pushes everyone upward – this benefits the commonwealth. A man who wants to shine alone, surrounded by flatterers, destroys the office. There are men who desire to prevail in major undertakings and concentrate their energy on a few weighty matters – they are beneficial. There are also men who crave to be always visible, involved, wanting recognition – they are meddlesome and disruptive.