What Would Cicero Say - Essay Example

What could Cicero Say? Cicero defines friendship as entire feelings of an individual to everything such as divine and human having mutual good affection and goodwill. He states that there is nothing that is better than this feeling as wisdom is given to individuals by the immortal gods, but some individuals prefer riches, sound health, honor. However, some prefer to be given power and essential gratification. He indicates that the individuals how accepts that the virtues of a true friendship are of supreme good are totally correct, even though the virtues themselves are what creates and sustains a true and good friendship between human beings. Without these virtues, true friendship cannot exist (McLatchey, 72). Virtues can be explained and interpreted with regard to our habits of life and speech. Virtues are not defined as some philosophers do through the use of high sounding words, but by citing some of the good men that are commonly regarded such as the Catos, the Pauli, the Scipios and the Phili mankind. Friendship has many types of advantages as Cicero explains them. He rhetorically asks how life can be valuable living by lacking the total trust, response from a friend in a friendship relation. He says that the sweetest joy is the one found in a kindred soul whose communication is not different from his acts and what he does to himself (Martin, 18). He defines friendship in his own way because of the experience he got in his own life. He ventures the meaning of the word friendship by using a comparable relationship between Laelius and Aemilianus to express his views. In the speech given by Laelius, most of the parts in the speech are initiated by the death of Scipio who was his best friend. He tries to show how it was hard to bear the loss of his friend and initiate the main reasons for the bereavement. He explains the qualities that make a person to be a good friend and the characteristics that show that an individual is not a good friend by citing some examples from his own life. Cicero explains the importance of a good friend and how true friends cannot come into existence without true friendship. The philosophy is written in the form of early Greek style in order to give a clear concept of what a good friendship involves while clearly giving the case study a way that is reasonable to the human understanding (Davis, 27). Someone can doubt if the existence of a close conventionality of feelings and opinion is essential or if it is essential for a good friendship to exist. The harmonious collision and comparison of sentiments and thoughts are certainly dependable with, and mostly favorable to friendly intimacy. Friends are rather the likeness of each other than infrequent complements. Atticus, Cicero was close, great friends as it were, between Laelius, and Scipio even though at many points in their friendship were exceedingly unlike. Atticus bearded some skills and tactics in his worldly matters qualities that Cicero never possessed. Cicero always wanted to be in the leading scene in the public affairs. He loved attacking the epicurean philosophy something that Atticus never wanted. He wonders how an individual would enjoy prosperity when he or she is not with the one he whose pleasure is not the same with that of the individual as it would not be easy to have adversity, maybe with the mercies of the person who has a heavy heart. This explains the objects of desire are mainly adapted for their own reasons. Wealth can be used to acquire power, which will in turn make an individual to get respect from those surrounding him, and as a result, the person will get a reputation and get self-gratification that will enable the individual to live in pleasure (Kripke, 89). Friendship brings together large numbers of aspects as everywhere you go, friendship will always be there as it is not limited to any locality. Friendship is never unseasonable and it is never annoying. Friendship is equitable with the proverb that says you can never compare fire or water with friendship. This is not the type of friendship that offers both profit and pleasure, but it is the kind of friendship that is perfect and true such as those that existed in the past and thus still holds special remembrance. This kind of friendship at points encouraged prosperity and by sharing and dividing the different types of burdens, the friends contained (McLatchey, 87). Cicero is right in his friendship definition. However, in creating a friendship relationship an individual should consider the virtues that make him attracted to the other party. He claims that if there are some virtues that attract the other and which are similarly disposed, the virtues can come together and the union formed because of these virtues there should be love among them as it is a necessity spring. It is absurd for an individual to be attracted in non-substantial materials such as fame, office, and appearance yet the individual is not wise to know the virtues that are endowed by the mind that is capable of either loving or to be loved (Davis, 55). Kind affections can yield rich revenue; offices and friendly care usually give more delight to an individual than other things can give. This indicates that there is nothing that can be so attracting and that allures to itself as the likeness of the character commonly does to a friendship. This explains why friendship usually exists between good men and they usually inculcate them into their comradeship as if the nature and kindred unite them. Nature is very craving and greedy and as indicated by the friendship that existed between Scaevola and fannies that in between the good expressing their affection towards the good does not express a common kind of feeling and as a result of this, we get the fountain of friendship being created by the nature. This type of feeling may extend into the surrounding community, as the virtues of friendship are neither sympathetic nor unable to be serviced or proud (McLatchey, 92). Friendships that are maintained are formed because of motive utility as most friendly relations that have an enduring bond, which is not commonly obtained through friendship, but through the love those friends, have for each other that usually give them a delight. Friendship comes with tokens such as pleasure if an individual has some tokens for the others. A friendship that is developed due to the needs that are fully endowed with resources and wealth and more so the virtues usually give a sure safeguard thus creating no need of the friendship relations as the individuals tend to be very generous and open-handed. Friendship is one of the major necessities of human life. As claimed by many, virtues are just some aspects that are used to measure the level of friendship between the individual, the despise resources and wealth and they are usually satisfied with the little pleasure the obtained from healthy friendship relations and the inexpensive lives they live. Some of the individuals on the other hand, are normally attracted to the material wealth, they admire such resources, and this makes them imagine nothing lower than the resources thus making them have a low esteem. Unlike those who commit their lives to public affairs, those who take interest in philosophy and learning, those who like taking control of their life affairs in a silent way and finally those who are not interested in the sensual pleasure, they all have feelings of friendship in a similar way. The all accepts that friendly relations are a key factor in life and life cannot be complete without friends (Davis, 88). Friendship normally twists in all lives and it affects all types of beings with its presence even if an individual is full of hatred and salvage to the human society as it was the case between Timon of Athens. He was an associate to Plutarch, who was different from him even though he was a virtual friend whom he freely expelled his characters and weaknesses, even though he had a special interest in linking to the Alcibiades during his lifetime as a youth (Martin, 32). We should not replace the old friends with new friends as it is taken in the perception that young horses are preferred over older horses that have already passed their prime age. An individual has the right to have as many friends as he wishes for. The old friends should not be replaced, as the older a friendship is, the more precious a friend becomes as with the case of wines that are worth keeping to perfect the friendship relation. If a new friendship is giving characters that indicate a good relation in the future, an individual should not turn down such friends, but instead maintains a good relationship with them while still keeping the old friends in their right place, as there is tremendous power in old friendship. The best thing about a friendship relation is that it places a man to an equal level with his inferiors since they are usually in a friendship circle that the prosperity with the rest as it was among the circle of Cicero friendship with Scipio. This is because Scipio never showed his superiority over the other members of their friendship circle. He always wanted his friends to enjoy the privilege that came along with his superiority. As people seek to create intimacy and friendship, individuals who possess power should lower themselves to the level that the other members in the friendship circle in order to make the not feel less privileged (McLatchey, 95). Even though this is the fact, many individuals usually come up with complaints or even reconsider, especially if they can offer any services that can make them look trust worth in a friendly manner. This type of men is usually full of hatred. Those that are taken to be superior should not show. Some individuals give away their friendship relations when they are held up and there esteems turn out to be low. Their self-esteem can be raised by allowing the individuals to perform tasks and obligations that are in their capacity whereby you can help and favor. Despite this, what you do to an individual or the type of service offered, should be measured through our own abilities followed by the capacity of those that the favor is being done to them (Martin, 299). This can be stated by indicating that a good friendship is that which is formed based on trust between individuals and the one that grows with time to create an established character.in life, there are no important occasions where friendship can be created and later be abandoned. Individuals who disagree with this are because they find it hard to separate with their friends because they are unmanly natured and weak. For this reason, such individuals are not fit to have friends. Both factors of creating and losing a friend should be put into consideration and what an individual gains from a friendship relation (Martin, 312). Some of the problems associated with friendship break ups are unavoidable. Some faults committed by friends usually betray them in an open manner to the strangers or to their friends. This makes the shamefulness of friendship to fall back to them. Intercourses suspension and its better commonly affect friendship relation for an individual to quite from such relationship rather than to cut asunder or to be unstitched. Changes of an individual character and virtues may also be one of the major causes that can make a friendship relation to end. In many occasions, enmity normally emerges as a result of a friendship relation ending and care should be taken. This is because a wage war that emerges between individuals whom have been having a relationship intimacy is usually unbecoming (McLatchey, 98). Works Cited Davis, Steven. Causal Theories of Mind: Action, Knowledge, Memory, Perception, and Reference. Berlin: W. De Gruyter, 1983. Internet resource. Kripke, Saul A. Philosophical Troubles. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print. Martin, Andrew. Funny You Should Say That: Amusing Remarks from Cicero to the Simpsons. New York: Overlook Press, 2006. Print. M. B. McLatchey. Primary Source. 3rd edition ISBN (9781478108412) page76~80 Read More