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Marcus Tullius Cicero's On Friendship : The Value Of Friendship

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By what means would we define the term friendship? Most would define it as a bond created based upon mutual trust and support. With that one must ask themselves: Can a friendship prosper without the act of being truthful and obeying the duty of friendly correction? The answer is No. Marcus Tullius Cicero wrote a text on friendship. Cicero established a model for Latin prose; his surviving works include speeches, treatises on rhetoric, philosophical works, and letters. His text on friendship outlines all of the great qualities that define and dispose of a friendship. A healthy friendship is one where you can be honest with one another. Individually learning to accept corrections is important as well as the ability to be humble when giving …show more content…

Where as if they are telling you to in a sense “throw it in your face”, then you have a reason to be upset and not what to accept what they are saying. Correction is the state of being free from error. When you witness a friend making a mistake or doing something wrong it is your duty to correct them. A good friend is one who gives corrections not someone that goes along with something they know is wrong. In doing so it is better to give corrections free of insult or ulterior motive. You should never go along with what someone wants to do simply because they are your friend. Giving corrections helps people to grow. No one wants to take part in a stagnant relationship; it’ll get you nowhere. Cicero says “So all diligence must be applied here: first, to make sure that the advice lacks any harshness, and second, to make sure that the correction lacks any trace of insult. In serving one another, however, let there be companionship – let sheer conformity be far away, something unworthy not only of a friend but of any free man”. From that we understand the idea that a friend isn’t someone that will try to conform they are someone that will stand up and tell you right from wrong. Giving corrections that come from good intentions verses hatred or malice. Being truthful and correcting your friends when they are wrong, are both vital components of a friendship? A healthy friendship cannot prosper without

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