Philosophy
Senior Projects and Student Research
Kathleen Todd '11
Philiabook: Examining the Changing Ideas Concerning Friendship in a Contemporary Context
Since the proliferation of an interactive
internet or Web 2.0, we have seen a surge of people
taking up their keyboards and actively participating in the
development of human presence online. Users of social
networks and online
communities are able
to create, develop and
refurbish their online
identities, which may
or may not be rooted
in reality. Just as many
prior technologies
have re-defined our
understanding of
certain ideas and
practices, so too does interactive social networking redefine
our ideas of friendship. Using, in particular,
Aristotle’s theory of “perfect friendship,” this project
demonstrates just how far from perfect our
contemporary digital friendships are becoming.
