Full Idea
The best defining mark of a city is the greatest excess of multitude with a view to self-sufficiency in living that can easily be surveyed as a whole. Let the size of the city, then, be determined in this way.
Gist of Idea
The size of a city is decided by the maximum self-sufficient community that can be surveyed
Source
Aristotle (Politics [c.332 BCE], 1326b23)
Book Reference
Aristotle: 'Politics', ed/tr. Reeve,C.D.C. [Hackett 2017], p.165
A Reaction
Modern states have presumably far exceeded to self-sufficiency test. The requirement to be 'surveyed' presumably implies that the state can be controlled. Modern technology means almost no limit to such a size.