The Examined Path Through Friendship — Aristotle's three types

Aristotle distinguished friendships of utility, of pleasure, and of virtue — and the distinction clarifies something most of us have felt but not named. The friendships of utility and pleasure are real and good; the friendships of virtue are rare, slow-growing, and among the most sustaining things a human life can contain. Most people have many of the first two and are fortunate to have one or two of the third.

The course sequence, in order.

Each step builds on the last.