Euthyphro
What is piety? We find Socrates in this dialogue under indictment and on his way to the trial. He meets a prophet, Euthyphro, who claims to know the nature of piety and plans to prosecute his father for murder of a slave.
The lines are drawn and we are presented with several definitions of piety as Euthyphro attempts to deal with Socrates' questioning. Do we get a definition that works? No, but we find the struggle itself is one that defines the dilemma of the limits of our knowledge, Humility and respect for these limits are the gifts bestowed to the attentive reader - Euthyphro leaves unbowed.
Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo by Plato. G. M. A. Grube, trans. Hackett Publishing, Indianapolis. 2002.
2 comments:
Thanks for posting all these comments on Plato. I've just started working my way through some of the dialogues and I think I'm hooked. I love your conclusion to Euthyphro--it captures much of the dialogue. Thanks again.
Thanks for the kind words, I am impressed that you took time to comment. I was always a fan of Aristotle, but I too become hooked on Plato, his teacher in many ways, about twenty years ago. Hope you enjoy the journey.
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