Full Idea
The state, according to Aristotle, 'exists by nature'. It does not owe its existence to convention, as some have claimed, and is not the product of a 'social contract'
Gist of Idea
Aristotle says the state is natural, not conventional or contractual
Source
report of Aristotle (Politics [c.332 BCE], I.2) by Julia Annas - The Morality of Happiness Ch.4
Book Reference
Annas,Julia: 'The Morality of Happiness' [OUP 1995], p.149