Socrates is always a joy to read, and Euthyphro is one of my favorites. With any work of Plato on Socrates, he asks a question. This one is of what makes an action or event pious in the eyes of the Gods. And after reading through the passage, that question remains strong and without answer. This seems the case in any age of thought, for we all think we know the answer but, no matter how sure of the truth, we don't actually know what the true answer is. Socrates points this out in his own way, but cannot supply an answer anymore than any he questions. So we have to ask "What is piety?" There are many answers out there, but as Socrates examined, we often talk and think in circles on what piety actually is and means. Are we even capable of answering this question, as we are but flesh and not of the divine? I don't know, and neither does Socrates.
I commented on Hannah Atkin's post.
I really like where you went with this. I completely agree with you that in philosophy we often just ask circular questions. Nevertheless, I feel personally that the question was answered and Socrates was simply being difficult. Euthyphro kept up fairly well with Socrates in answering his questions and I believe that piety is in fact whatever makes God happy. The Greeks' problem was simply that they believed in more than one God and therefore had different desires to fulfill per god.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Briana- the only way to lead a pious life is to do it according to what God would consider pious. There are always consequences for sin; and in our sin, we can still think we are leading a pious life- but we often lose track of the fact that we are very imperfect and hardly able to define piety with our human opinion.
ReplyDeleteYou are right in that Socrates is unable to answer the question you have stated. I find it humorous how he was getting close to finding his thoughts, and then Euthyphro is like "Oh, sorry. I gotta run."
ReplyDeleteYes, but the beauty of Socrates is that he does not settle for a mediocre answer. He does not settle just because it sounds good. He searches for the truth, even if it cannot be found.
ReplyDeleteGreat thoughts, Daniel! I love Socrates/ Plato as well, and you point out the Socratic method of debate very well. He asks but does not answer. If only we could do this in today's society... Wait! We have the media, be it social, local, national. We have a way to asks questions without giving answers. YET, somehow, I believe those methods don't exactly match the finesse of Socrates', for they do not allow the adversary a chance to answer. Once again, thanks for your thoughts. Always a pleasure to find another fascinated with Socrates/Plato.
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