Summary of Lydia Denworth's Friendship

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

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#1 The modern science of friendship began when psychiatrist John Bowlby met ethologist Robert Hinde in 1954. They had been invited to speak at an academic meeting in London, and they became close friends.

#2 Attachment is the basis of friendship, but it is also what makes it so difficult to define. It is a form of socialization that involves emotion, conversation, and the inner workings of the mind. It is not as obvious in other types of social interaction.

#3 Aristotle believed that friendship was one of life’s unalloyed pleasures. He believed that philia came in different flavors: for profit, for pleasure, and for virtue. He also believed that friendship was necessary for all people, rich and poor, young and old, male and female.

#4 The psychologist John Bowlby was the first to recognize the importance of social connection, and he saw it as a basis for morality. He believed that early relationships were of fundamental importance, but when he reviewed the existing research, he could find little that framed the issue the way he saw it.