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Types of Friendship

Characteristics and roles of different friends

The Sex and the City franchise—spanning books, TV, and movies—is known for many things, including frank discussions of sex, romantic entanglements, and fashion. But more than anything else, it’s a story of friendships. At the center is the intensely bonded foursome of Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha. They spend almost all of their leisure time together, disclose everything to each other, and support one another through hardships—including heartbreaks, infidelity, infertility, elder care, and even cancer. Surrounding them is a broader network of associated friends, the closest of whom are two gay men, Stanford and Anthony. In addition, as various lovers come and go, the ones who stay—Big, Steve, Harry, and Smith Jerrod—forge friendships with the other women. And in the first movie, Carrie forms a close alliance with her African American assistant, Louise, as they bond over their shared love of Louis Vuitton.

Sex and the City provides us with an admittedly narrow glimpse into friendships, one that is predominantly Euro-American, affluent, and urban. But despite this limited view, it does provide an accurate reflection of the many types of friendship that populate our lives, regardless of sex or city. When one considers these types, two stand out from the rest as unique, challenging, and significant: best friends and cross-category friends.