As a human being, we make many acquaintances and friends and we get into many relationships by virtue of marriage, raising a family, and by simply falling into love. We are social animals and cannot remain isolated from others. So, whether at school, workplace, or even in a train or a bus, we tend to start a conversation with others. However, despite talking and interacting with so many people, we make few friends and enter into far fewer relationships. Friendship is a close bonding between two or more people where there is mutual affection for each other. Relationship is a similar concept that confuses many because of the similarities. There are casual relationships, but there are also strong relationships based upon love and trust between a man and a woman. Let us find out if there are any differences between friendship and relationship in this article.
Friendship
One can have many friends, and it is not necessary to have a strong feeling of same intensity for all of them. Friendship is a result of a feeling of affection that one feels for another person. What starts as acquaintance slowly turns into friendship without one deliberately thinking about the relationship. If we think along the lines of a continuum, acquaintance is at the left extreme followed by friendship while relationship lies at the far right of the continuum. Friendship is a bond that has been there since time immemorial and one can feel its effect from very early ages when toddlers make friends depending upon their nature and likings.
Friendship starts with a liking for another person which may be because of look and appearance. It could also be because of the nature of the other person. Whatever the reason, friendship forges when there are feelings of sympathy, empathy, compassion, trust, faith, understanding and reciprocity etc. It is when one feels comfortable in the company of another person and likes to spend time with him that friendship is said to have been formed. When you know that the other person is not judgmental and treats you on face value that you feel attracted to him.
In most culture, there are some basic behaviors that are indicative of mutual friendship such as holding hands, kissing each other on cheeks, exchanging bracelets and friendship bands etc. In friendship, feelings and emotions play a very important role, and friendship could be asexual or sexual.
Relationship
Relationship is a word that brings images of child and parent, worker and boss, boy and girl, and other pairs in front of our eyes. However, in the context of this article, relationship between a man and woman will be discussed.
Relationship is a term that indicates that two people are slightly more than just friends. It could be casual relationship that is termed as dating, or it could be serious relationship that eventually turns very emotional and physical. There is also a term called romantic relationship that is more formal and indicative of mutual love and understanding of a couple for each other. Whether there is sex or not, relationship always has an emotional aspect that governs the terms between the pair. Relationship brings enjoyment and pleasure for the man and the woman, but it also entails responsibility for both. Relationship remains a thing of joy as long as it does not get very demanding which is when partners feel suffocation and decide to get separate.
What is the difference between Friendship and Relationship?
• Relationship is a type of friendship which is emotionally stronger
• Relationship can be casual or formal, and it could be romantic or physical
• Relationship can be more demanding than friendship
• Love may or may not be a part of friendship
• People choose to describe their relationship as friendship until they are confident
• Relationship can be asexual as between a boss and employee or a child and a parent
• The boundaries in a relationship are decided by people inside the relationship
• Friendship is mostly free of sex while relationship often involves physical intimacy