Aristotle's Three Types of Friendships for Happier Living

The renowned philosopher Aristotle delineated three types of friships that significantly contribute to our overall happiness, as highlighted by Arthur Brooks in his Harvard happiness course article titled The Best Fris Can Do Nothing for You.

According to Brooks:

1. Utility Friships: This category encompasses relationships primarily based on practicality or utilitylike the connections you share with colleagues or business associates. These friships are transactional in nature and serve a specific purpose.

2. Friships of Pleasure: These bonds are grounded in mutual admiration and joy derived from each other's company, often characterized by humor, interest, and enjoyment shared between fris.

3. Perfect Friships: A relationship considered 'perfect' by Aristotle’s standards is one that transcs the utility or pleasure realms; it focuses on enhancing both parties through a shared love for something external to them, be it spiritual such as religion or just pln fun like sports, factors like work, finances, or ambitions.

Brooks emphasizes that while utility and pleasure friships are crucial for advancing our lives in various ways, they may not always provide lasting joy and comfort. Therefore, having at least one 'perfect' friship is indispensable to achieving true contentment.

The perfect friships often involve a common passion or interest that elevates both individuals beyond their personal circumstances towards shared virtues. These connections are uniquely rewarding, yet Brooks acknowledges that this type of satisfaction might be difficult to articulate in words but can be intuitively understood by most people.

Aristotle's classification underscores the multifaceted nature of relationships and suggests that to experience true happiness, we need a diverse range of fris who each fill different roles in our lives:

• Utility friships help us advance professionally or economically.

• Pleasure friships bring joy through companionship and shared interests.

• Perfect friships offer depth beyond the practical or emotional; they elevate our moral and spiritual growth.

Ultimately, fostering these three types of relationships can lead to a more fulfilling life, encompassing both personal development and shared enjoyment.
This article is reproduced from: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/04/harvard-happiness-expert-3-types-of-friendships-and-why-you-need-them.html

Please indicate when reprinting from: https://www.812o.com/Women_of_both_sexes/Aristotle_Philosophy_Happiness_Fris.html