Nicomacheans Ethics Book 9 section 1-7

1. Giving & Receiving in a frienship

• Lowest level of friendship: political form which giving and return is seen as economical
activities and repay (fair service: equivalent in advantage)
• Love relationship: sometimes love is not returned, and promises are not fulfilled (sake of
utility vs pleasure)-> not enduring
• Should:
• love his character & qualities > pure pleasure,
• because character & qualities are self-dependent and enduring
• Should not:
• give reward before giving, in the relationship of job
• Conflict found when the receive and giving is not balanced
• In friendship with highest virtue, return of favour is according to the intention, not
necessary with equal value
• Higher order of friendship: return compromised by both parties
2. Repayment of debt
• People should repay debt before giving unless in urgent and noble
case
• Repayment is decided base on the relationship of the two parties
3. Friend changed: end the relationship or not?
• Reasons of friendship:
• 1st case, Friend became evil: should help the friend for correction,
only end relationship if the attempt failed
• 2nd case, Friend became too superior and have a large interval
between: should keep a remembrance of the friendship and make
some allowance if or former relationship, but end the relationship
anyway
4. Relationship to self
• Virtuous men:
• Harmonious thought,
• part of soul in concord,
• self-loving as they see friends as another self

• Evil men:
• In conflict with themselves,
• see companion as distractions to escape from self,
• not disposed to love himself
5. Goodwill vs friendship and love relationship
• Goodwill is:
• similar to friendship but not truly friendship
• It can be towards strangers
• Does not involve intensity or desire
6. Concord of friendship
• Concord:
• The mark of political friendship
• Exists among good men since they desire what is just expedient
• However, bad men wants more than his own share and are in the
state of discord
7. Relationship between benefactors and
beneficiaries
• Benefactors (Giver) love those they have benefited more than beneficiaries
(Receiver) love their Benefactors (Giver) ->seems unnatural
• Benefactors love beneficiaries because they have in a sense of his own
work, and proved his own self’s action
• However, it may not seems to be a noble act to be helped or gave by
someone. So, beneficiaries are not noted with pleasure
• So, it is shown that it’s better to act than being acted upon (To give better
than to receive)
• And when effort is used to acquire or achieve something, the pleasure is
greater
Q&A