Reading:
- Plato, Euthyphro, in Five Dialogues, pp. 1–20; read also
the translator's introduction, pp. ix–x.
- Bertrand Russell, "The
Value of Philosophy" (PDF file).
Page references in Plato's writings:
Note that numbers and letters appear in the margins of the texts of
Plato's writings—e.g., a "2" at the beginning of
Euthyphro, followed by letters from
"b" to "d," then a "3," and so on. These refer to the edition of
Plato's works by a man known as Stephanus (Henri Estienne, 1531–1598),
and they are the
standard system of reference for Plato's writings. I shall be using
these numbers, so you should familiarize yourself with them. Note that
the location "a" is indicated in the margin by the numeral alone; e.g.,
a "3" in the margin indicates location 3a.
Study questions:
- What has Socrates been charged with? Who has brought the charges?
- What charge has Euthyphro come to make, and against whom?
- How do Socrates and Euthyphro come to be involved in a discussion
of "what is the pious, and what the impious" (5d)? What has this
philosophical issue got to do with their affairs in the law court?
- What is Euthyphro's first answer to Socrates' question (5d–6a)?
Why is Socrates not satisfied with it?
- What is Euthyphro's second answer (7a)? Why, again, is Socrates
not satisfied with it? Why does the supposed occurrence of strife among
the gods make trouble for Euthyphro's definition of what is pious?
- What is Euthyphro's third answer (9e, made in response to
Socrates' suggestion)? Why, again, is Socrates not satisfied with it?
—This
is the most difficult, but also the most important and interesting part
of the dialogue, from 10a to 11b. One way to understand Socrates' main
point here is that you cannot without inconsistency both (i) explain
what it means for something to be pious by saying that it is loved by
the gods and also (ii) explain why the gods love certain things by
saying that those things are pious. The explanation can only go in one
direction, not in both directions at once. In which direction do
Socrates and Euthyphro hold that the explanation should go?
- What does Euthyphro take to be the relation between piety and
justice (12a–e)? What fault does Socrates find with his view?
- Imagine a modern-day version of the Euthyphro in which the question
under discussion is not "What is pious?" but "What is morally right?",
and in which the answer given by Euthyphro (or his modern equivalent)
is not "That
which the gods love" but "That which God commands of us." How might
Socrates' criticisms of Euthyphro's third answer have application to
such a view?