The moral code of a society is established by many different factors. A large amount of different social guidelines are derived from religious doctrines. Due to the evolution of religion, social guidelines lack an absolute. The absolute of piety is what Socrates seemed to be searching for. His questioning of Euthyphro may have been due to his innocent curiosity. It is also probable to assume that Socrates knew that there was no true definition of Piety, and that his overall quest to find the universal of piety was used more as an example. He may have been expressing critical thought and encouraging society to understand the variation of individual perception, and the distinction of human existence. In my opinion, piety cannot have a universal meaning, due to the variation of the human race. The understanding of human fallibility and differentiation of human existence, in my opinion is what Plato meant to express with his construction of the theory of forms. I also believe that representing the lack of human similarity in terms of a pious action, was the reason for Socrates’ severe questioning of Euthyphro.
Euthyphro uses religion as one of his attempts to explain what the true definition of piety is, “Piety, then, is that which is dear to the gods, and impiety is that which is not dear to them” (Jowett, 1903), this is a very common interpretation of the definition piety. Webster’s dictionary defines piety as,” the quality or state of being pious: or: fidelity to natural obligations (as to parents) or: dutifulness in religion: devoutness” (Merriam-Webster, 2012). Webster’s dictionary provides a definition of piety that is very similar to the definition provided by Euthyphro. The dictionary first states piety as an act of being p...
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...s of morale led him to understand that there is no definite. In situations and in life there is only relative, and nothing is constant. As humans we try to find the closest thing to constant, so we can measure our lives and daily struggles and compare them to something or someone that is not subject to the fallibility of man. I believe that Socrates was encouraging the search for knowledge by questioning the original understanding of certain definitions, like piety.
Bibliography
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Jowett, B. (1903). Euthyphro. The four socratic dialogue of plato, 10-36.
Merriam-Webster. (2012). About Us: An Encyclopedia Britannica Company. Retrieved January 24, 2012, from Merriam Webster Web Site: http://www.merriam-webster.com/info/index.htm?&t=1327443609
Wolfsdorf, D. (2003). Socrates' pursuit of definitions . BRILL.
During the dialogue, Euthyphro defines, “Piety means prosecuting the unjust individual who has committed murder or sacrilege, or any other such crime, as I am doing now, whether he is your father or mother or whoever he is.” Given this Euthyphro overarching principles can be summarized as divine law requires to prosecute the offender no matter who she or he is. Also, the ideology should be what befits humans as well. Socrates is fine with how Euthyphro accounts the factual evidence of his father’s misguided acts. What Socrates takes problem is how Euthyphro uses greek mythology to highlight that taking action against your parents is the correct direction of action. Due to the fact that mythology isn’t confirmed to be true in any sense, socrates feels as though this is extremely inappropriate. Euthyphro actions should be based on divine law with results in him being impious. Socrates ultimate principles can be summarized as respect for parents should be the ultimate law combined with whatever does not befit the gods shouldn’t befit everyone else. Insert another
Socrates was wise men, who question everything, he was found to be the wise man in Athens by the oracle. Although he was consider of being the wises man alive in those days, Socrates never consider himself wise, therefore he question everything in order to learned more. Socrates lived a poor life, he used to go to the markets and preach in Athens he never harm anyone, or disobey any of the laws in Athens, yet he was found guilty of all charges and sentence to die.
In the context of the dialogue, this simply segues to a logical argument about the definition of piety, and the question is more or less rhetorical as Socrates asks it. When Euthyphro chooses the first option, the discussion moves on to his next point without further ado, and the implication that this limits the omnipotence of the gods is ignored, probably because the omnipotence of the pantheon of gods wasn?t an assumption of Greek theology (after all, as we read in the dialogue, the father and grandfather of Zeus were castrated; what kind of omnipotent being would allow that to happen to himself?). However, when read with a Judeo-Christian concept of God in mind, the dilemma becomes this:
When discussing specific knowledge, it is often hard to pin down an exact definition of what it is you are discussing. Often a concept or word will get thrown around so often that it will begin to be taken for granted and when pressed, a person may struggle to pin down specifically what it is they mean. Realizing this, Socrates often went out and attempted to fix these kinds of problems and find out what people actually knew, compared to what they just thought they knew. In the dialogues Euthyphro and Meno, Socrates attempts to pin down definitions for piety and virtue, respectively. In doing so, we are shown that the thinkers in question struggle to define these terms, and attempt to do so in vague terms that may vary heavily under different circumstances. What Socrates is attempting to find is one definitive definition of piety and virtue, what is called his One Form Requirement. Rather than defining something by classifying different parts that make it up, Socrates maintains the belief that piety and virtue both can be simplified into one specific form that describes exactly what makes all F actions F.
In the article “God’s Heart for the Poor,” Dr. Jay W. Richards, a famous author, claims that Christians should have both heart and mind in order to help the poor and become a true, good neighbor. He uses some Bible verses to teach the readers about the importance of being a good neighbor and uses The Piety Myth to explain how Christians should “exercise prudence” and connects this concept to the economics.
Euthyphro’s second definition of piety is “the pious is what the gods love”. Socrates takes this idea and
In the Euthyphro, Socrates is making his way into the courthouse; however, prior to entering he had a discussion with a young priest of Athens, Euthyphro. This dialogue relates religion and justice to one another and the manner in which they correlate. Euthyphro feels as though justice necessitates religion and Socrates feels the opposite, religion necessitates justice. Euthyphro claims that religion is everything, justice, habits, traditions, customs, cultures, etc. all are derived from religion. Socrates went on to question what exactly would be the definition of pious. Euthyphro offered Socrates three definitions of pious and in all three Socrates was able to successfully find fault...
I totally agree that Socrates found it important to research about life’s morality and not just think the same way others do. That is a way of proving the knowledge of men. Ones sitting quiet in the corner usually have more knowledge than others that talk so much about what they know. Many men with a high position in life do not always have the most knowledge.
There really is no logical stance for opposition. It makes sense; it clicks. Piety, holiness, is undoubtedly related to a mans service to god and his social implications because of it. It is a universal truth that cannot be disputed. Holiness is not only the general acceptance of a higher being- it is the acknowledgement of god in such a way that it exceeds the shallow affirmations of the common man, usually by acts which displace one from indulgences of society. Religious officials strive to achieve this true definition of holiness, which is made evident in their lifestyles.
The first objection that Socrates stated was that Euthyphro’s first definition of piety was not a definition because it did not express a general idea of the word piety. Soon after the first try at defining the word piety, Euthyphro said that “what is dear to all the gods.” In disagreement, Socrates let out his second objection, which was that some gods could disagree. Then, Euthyphro said that piety was “what is dear to all the gods.” As his final objection, Socrates states “should something be pious just because it is dear to the gods or is it dear to the gods because it is pious?” In short, is an action considered morally right by God because it is morally good, or is it morally good because God orders it? Even though this important point impacts the Divine Command Theory mainly, it also works against the theory of Cultural Relativism. The theory’s problems start arising when you start to think “why do our actions become moral if society or our culture approves of them?” There is also nothing in the theory of Cultural Relativism that explains why normal behavior in a society is considered the moral behavior instead of the other way around. Thus, morality is decided on a random basis there is nothing that says what makes normal behavior moral. The Divine Command Theory and Cultural Relativism both share this weakness that discredits
Euthyphro was arguing that by doing what the gods believe is holy and pious you are making them better, in other words you are taking care of them and it is like a kind of service that you are doing towards the gods. Euthyphro said, “The kind of care, Socrates, that slaves take of their masters” which meant that you are taking care of them in the sense that you are making them better and not actually caring for them (17, 13d). In other words, you are helping improve them and this is a service that the gods appreciate and want you to do. He believed that this service is improving the gods and that they like this service. The gods believe that being holy is a service towards them, therefore there should be a reason on why the gods use us and want to reward our holiness. He believes that the gods choose what is holy for a reason and should be approved by
He went about doing that by questioning people. Socrates realized that he truly knew nothing, of importance. So he tried to seek the truth. To be able to do this he had an open mind, and told his followers they should also have open minds. This is why Socrates was falsely accused of a culture that was both strict and hypocritical.
As it is alluded to in the Euthyphro, the concept of piety is one in which all followers of faith and beyond strive to understand and adhere to the manifestation of. For hundreds of years after this dialogue the question of piety and divine command still alludes the wisest thinkers and holiest of men. Is the pious being loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is being loved by the gods? With only two paths to venture down, both having unpleasant results, this question is still unanswered to most. But the importance of the question remains. To question everything we encounter, to question everything we think we already know, and to “prefer nothing, unless it is true (14e)”. In this essay I will argue that the Gods commanding good actions because they are already good is the
The interesting dialogue between Socrates and Euthyphro demonstrates this Socratic method of questioning in order to gain a succinct definition of a particular idea, such as piety. Though the two men do not come to a conclusion about the topic in the conversation seen in Euthyphro, they do discover that piety is a form of justice, which is more of a definition than their previous one. Their conversation also helps the reader to decipher what makes a good definition. Whenever Euthyphro attempts to define piety, Socrates seems to have some argument against the idea. Each definition offered, therefore, becomes more succinct and comes closer to the actual concept of piety, rather than just giving an example or characteristic of it. To be able to distinguish between a good definition and a bad one is the first step to defining what Socrates so desperately wished to define: w...
In Euthyphro, Socrates and Euthyphro are discussing the topic of piety. Namely what is in fact piety, and once one knows that, how he can regard himself to be 'pious'. According to Euthyphro, there are three definitions of piety: doing what Euthyphro is currently doing; but this needs an essence, which is basically a refutation agreement between the gods. On the topic of gods, Euthyphro's second definition is that piety is what the gods love, and thirdly that piety is what all the gods love. Based off of Euthyphro's definitions, one must ask if something is pious because the gods love it? Or do the gods love it because