A Friend in Need is A Friend Indeed - Friendship

The notion of friendship changed throughout centuries. It was recognized as an essential constituent of life, which was supposed to be good, happy. The Greek and Roman times are characterized by developing friendship as a core social value. People believed friendship brings wisdom and happiness. It was first seriously mentioned by Aristotle who divided it into three categories:

- Utility

- Pleasure

- Goodness

He described it in the following way ‘a single soul dwelling in two bodies’ it was believed that immerse amount of friendship will help to achieve wealth and knowledge.

To being with, in the ancient world, the friendship is recognized in the whole structure of Greek society. It was based on strong family and neighborly relations. The basic political unit Polis – the city state, dense and geographically small, represented adult male who met there regularly about daily business, market place. In the place where democracy was born – Athens – adult men kept seeing each other, kept talking about politics. There is no welfare system at that time, thus, people relied on each other, for that reason, friendship was very important to maintain these bounds. The friendship is crucial for people to stay in good shape, be to well.  It could help in times of poverty, when the child was born. Numerous situation put it under test. The common belief was that people are social animals and there is a natural thing to come together to from friendships. People were concerned by two ethical problems; How should we live? What sort of person would we be? The friendship built the constituency of good flourishing life. The good is attracted by good, they believed. Both sides appreciated each other goodness. They held that the good is self-sufficient. According to Plato if we think more carefully what self-sufficiency life is, we will comprehend the real idea and predominant function of friendship. It is running dualism, You need friends to obtain good friendships. He believed that we might achieve some purposes if two things are maintained, which are the notion and definition of friendship and 'what' causes friendship to begin with. Aristotle picks some ideas directly from Plato. Friends are people who share a natural good will. Friends rely on each other, share responsibility. Friendship begins because of what two people do together and Aristotle called it – utility friendship; e.g. People work together, exchange ideas together. There are also friendships of pleasure – people share something they enjoy and it is a sexual pleasure. Aristotle believes it is the best friendship that can happen to anyone. Seneca's and Cicero’s approach differs. For instance, Thomas Aquinas sees friendship as a domain of an inner soul, a friend is another self, simply, You see yourself in Your friend. Yet, sometimes One loves a friend too much, experiences a nervous breakdown and it is what Cicero writes about. His reflections are accurate, it is foolish to love someone as if he was a God. He believed that You love Your friend through God. God's love, though, is universal.  Friendship is not always good, Shakespearean 'Macbeth' indicates how destructive it might be, and how mischievous friends become – Jago is such a Judas. In 'Hamlet' on the other hand we could speak it is almost 'un'conditional one, Hamlet and Horatio are inseparable. Bear in mind while reading Thomas Aquinas that friendship was about to be reconciled with the laws of God, it has got intrinsic value. You love Your friend for Your friend own sake. God is a role model who shaped the human friendship, you love God as a friend, and now a question appears 'Is God a friend to Us?'

Aelred of Rievaulx sees friendship as a spiritual notion based on love, goodness and affection to others.

In the Renaissance friendship and its notions are rediscovered, it became a fashion and a trend. The court is both the center of power and culture. Friendship became a very useful tool, a practical one, without quality, it is corrupted, rooted to the bones, bases its foundations on sex and power. Immanuel Kant, on the other hand, formalizes this problem. He finds it very problematic, it is categorically imperative, which means, friends do not act according to rules, they act according to love and experience they have together. He pushes friendship to one side in moral ethics. He doesn't believe there would be friendship in Haven, because, Haven is the place where morality is completely lived out.

Vibrant and excellent bloom of friendship is in XVIII century, clubs, society trigger it on and on. Edinburgh is a place of its reborn. Letters became incredibly popular. It was kept and collected as a real and unquestionable testimony of friendship.

Bibliography:

1. 'Lysis' by Plato

2. 'Ethics' by Aristotle

3. 'On the Principles of Nature (De principiis naturae ad fratrem Sylvestrum)' by Thomas Aquinas
4. 'Duty & Idea' by Immanuel Kant

5. 'Spiritual Friendship' by Aelred of Rievaulx

6. 'On Friendship' by Cicero Marcus Tullius