Abstract

ABSTRACT: This article proposes an interpretation of the chapters of the Nicomachean Ethics concerning exchange and friendship. Rejecting approaches where Aristotle anticipates modern labour or need-based theories of value, the article claims that those notions of labour and need are required for a satisfactory interpretation of the most obscure passages of Book V Finally, Aristotle’s texts on exchange and friendship are related in such a way that the latter, since it is free from any political considerations, allows us to better understand the philosopher’s view on exchange.