n.
Rule by the few, often seen as having self-serving ends.
Aristotle used the term pejoratively for unjust rule by bad men, contrasting oligarchy with rule by an aristocracy . Most classic oligarchies have resulted when governing elites were recruited exclusively from a ruling class, which tends to exercise power in its own interest. The term is considered outmoded today because "few" conveys no information about the nature of the ruling group.