WHAT
IS FRIENDSHIP?
Friendship is
simply the state among two or more persons of being friends. So the logical
question, then, is, “What is a friend?”
This is a bit
of an emotional question. Merriam Webster defines the word as, “One attached to
another by affection or esteem.” Both the affection and esteem are important
components, and the word has an emotional connotation
indeed.
One normally
looks forward to being around a friend. Anticipation of a friend’s companionship
produces a feeling of pleasure or euphoria. One often values a friend for
frankness, for being able to hold a high opinion of the friend, and by a feeling
of warmth for the friend. A friend is important in one’s own life. One wants a
friend to remain a friend for life.
A friend
generates a greater feeling of attraction than does an acquaintance, who will be
a person that one merely knows and associates with casually. One does not
particularly care about the company of an acquaintance, and does not attach much
personal significance to interactions with such another person. If one has only acquaintances, one is
truly alone; if one has a friend, one need not be alone.
I had such a
friend toward the end of my senior year of high school and over that summer. I
can remember his telling me that I was one of his best friends, and that what he
greatly valued in me was my “frankness.”
Sometimes a
friendship can evolve into a romantic relationship. One falls in love, is ready
to make the partner the most important other adult in his or her life, and start
a family.
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This is an
approximate reconstruction from memory of the “friendship” essay that I handed
in as an English theme in freshman English at the College of William and Mary
around September 29, 1961. The class was held in Washington Hall. The original
theme got a grade of A- (it was the first graded theme of the semester) and was
a bit longer and more expansive than this. I do not have the original ink
handwritten hardcopy as far as I know (unless I find it someday hidden away in
an attic footlocker).
Here is a
good reference on writing an English theme structured as a “definition
theme”:
http://www.studyguide.org/essay-definition.htm
ã1961, 2005 by Bill Boushka. All rights reserved. Please do not use
for plagiarism.
I suppose
that a “definition theme” like this could make a good SOL (“Standards of
Learning”) or Praxis essay question. If so, the student should be prepared to
add original details to the ideas presented here.
Return to “Do
Ask Do Tell” Chapter 1 to Chapter 1 footnotes I suppose that I should have
included this file in the appendix of the original book as printed (too late for
that now!)
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