The Phantasia in Friendship in Aristotle: Friendship and Self-Reflection
Open Access
Author:
Lombardi, Sarah
Area of Honors:
Interdisciplinary in English and Philosophy
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Debbie Hawhee, Thesis Supervisor Matt Tierney, Thesis Honors Advisor Brady Bowman, Thesis Honors Advisor Christopher Robert Moore, Thesis Supervisor
Keywords:
Aristole Ethics Philosophy
Abstract:
Friendship, as defined by Aristotle, provides an opportunity for valuable self-reflection. The faculty that provides this self-reflection opportunity is phantasia (imagination). First, through an examination of Aristotle’s writings on friendship, the differences between the three tiers of friendship come to light. The strengths and weaknesses of the first two become clear, and it can be seen how all three build up to the third and strongest type. After the third type is established, it has to be developed through sharing activities and spending time together. During this shared activity, the friends start to learn new things about themselves that they may not have learned before. Phantasia shows how this new self-knowledge comes about. Phantasia acts as an echo effect, where the friend receives new information about themself through the activities they perform together. This has to happen in the context of friendship because of the emotional connection that comes with friendship. Phantasia expands and enriches one’s concept of one’s self, making clear one’s good qualities and virtues. This connection between friendship and phantasia shows why Aristotle sees friendship as a beneficial thing, and the greatest of all external goods.
