Friendship

Friends people that you can trust, share like minded activities and above all, people that will do you no harm. The kinds of friendship may perhaps be cleared up if we first come to know the object of love. For not everything seems to be loved but only the lovable, and this is good, pleasent , or useful; but it would seem to be that by which some good or pleasure is produced that is useful, so that it is the good and the pleasent taht are lovable as ends. Do men love, then, the good, or what is good for them? These sometimes clash. So to with regard to the pleasant. Now it is thought that each loves what is good for himself, and that the good is without qualification lovable, and what is good for each man is good for him; but each man loves not was is good for him but what seems good. This however will make no difference; we shall just have to say that this is 'that which seems lovable', Now there are three grounds on which people love: of the love of lifeless objects we do not use the word 'friendship', for it is not mutual love, nor is there a wishing of good to the other ( for it surelly would be ridiculous to wish wine well; if one wishes anything for it, it is that it may keep, so that one may have it for oneself); but to a friend we say we ought to wish what is good for his sake. But to those who thus wish good we ascibe only goodwill, if the wish is not reciprocated; goodwill when it is reciprocal being friendship. Or must we add 'when it is recognised'? For many people have goodwill to those whom they have not seen to judge to be good or useful; and one of these might return this feeling. These people seem to bear goodwill to each other; but how could one call them friends when they do not know their mutual feelings? To be friends, then , they must be mutually recognised as bearing goodwill and wishing well to each other for one of the aforesaid reasons.