Since then a subsistence is necessary in every family, the means of procuring it certainly makes up part of the management of a family, for without necessaries it is impossible to live, and to live well. As in all arts which are brought to perfection it is necessary that they should have their proper instruments if they would complete their works, so is it in the art of managing a family: now of instruments some of them are alive, others inanimate; thus with respect to the pilot of the ship, the tiller is without life, the sailor is alive; for a servant is as an instrument in many arts. Thus property is as an instrument to living; an estate is a multitude of instruments; so a slave is an animated instrument, but every one that can minister of himself is more valuable than any other instrument; for if every instrument, at command, or from a preconception of its master's will, could accomplish its work (as the story goes of the statues of Daedalus; or what the poet tells us of the tripods of Vulcan, "that they moved of their own accord into the assembly of the gods "), the shuttle would then weave, and the lyre play of itself; nor would the architect want servants, or the [1254a] master slaves. Now what are generally called instruments are the efficients of something else, but possessions are what we simply use: thus with a shuttle we make something else for our use; but we only use a coat, or a bed: since then making and using differ from each other in species, and they both require their instruments, it is necessary that these should be different from each other. Now life is itself what we use, and not what we employ as the efficient of something else; for which reason the services of a slave are for use. A possession may be considered in the same nature as a part of anything; now a part is not only a part of something, but also is nothing else; so is a possession; therefore a master is only the master of the slave, but no part of him; but the slave is not only the slave of the master, but nothing else but that. This fully explains what is the nature of a slave, and what are his capacities; for that being who by nature is nothing of himself, but totally another's, and is a man, is a slave by nature; and that man who is the property of another, is his mere chattel, though he continues a man; but a chattel is an instrument for use, separate from the body.
Every household needs the means to survive, so obtaining those means is certainly part of household management. Without necessities, it is impossible to live or to live well. Just as every fully developed craft needs its proper tools to complete its work, so does household management. Some tools are alive, while others are lifeless. For a ship’s pilot, the tiller is lifeless, while the sailor is alive. A servant serves as a tool in many crafts. In the same way, property is a tool for living, and an estate is a collection of tools. A slave is therefore a living tool. But anyone who can carry out tasks independently is more valuable than any other tool. Suppose every tool could perform its work on command, or by anticipating its master’s wishes. Such tools would resemble the statues of Daedalus in the story, or the tripods of Vulcan described by the poet, "that they moved of their own accord into the assembly of the gods". Then the shuttle would weave and the lyre would play by itself. The architect would not need servants, nor would the [1254a] master need slaves. What we generally call tools produce something else, while possessions are things we simply use. With a shuttle, we make something else for our use. But a coat or a bed is something we simply use. Making and using are different kinds of activity, and both require tools. So the tools for each must also differ. Now life itself is something we live, not a means of producing something else. For this reason, a slave’s services are for use. A possession may be understood in the same way as a part of something. A part not only belongs to something else, but belongs entirely to it. The same is true of a possession. A master is therefore only the slave’s master, not a part of the slave. But the slave is not only the master’s slave, but belongs entirely to the master. This fully explains a slave’s nature and capacities. A human being who by nature belongs not to himself but entirely to another is a slave by nature. A human being who is another’s property is merely that person’s chattel, though he remains human. A chattel is a tool for use, separate from the body.