Ku filozofii przyjaźni. W dialogu z Platonem, Arystotelesem i św. Teresą od Jezusa (część II)

Abstract

The article constitutes the second part (third chapter) of a broader study of the philosophy of friendship. It presents a sort of a dialogue between three great experts in this field: Plato, Aristotle, and St Teresa of Avila. They give testimony to the central place of the idea of friendship in their respective times, and they help modernity restore it. This second part of the study is dedicated to ethics and focuses on three issues. The first one (3.1) refers back to the first two chapters (historical and metaphysical) and talks about the foundations of the ethics of friendship. Not only does it show the similarities and differences in the opinions held by the parties of the dialogue, but it also unveils the basic differences between tchem and the modern people. The second point (3.2) concerns everyone’s need for friendship and friends, as well as the specific good and benefits of friendship. The third question (3.3) are the conditions of friendship. Six of them are listed: community life, equality, reciprocity, kindness, awareness in the relationship, and trust. In the third part of the study, four other issues related to the ethics of friendship will be discussed. The first one (3.4) will concentrate on the forms of friendship, the second one (3.5) on friendship as a virtue, the third one (3.6) on friendship as a feeling, and the fourth one (3.7) on the relationship between friendship and love.