The Euthyphro

In Plato’s Euthyphro, we read about how Socrates is asking Euthyphro of piety and about the situation he is in. Euthyphro must judge a murder, and to the surprise of the audience, the murder was his father. As the scene goes on, Socrates keeps asking what Euthyphro means by piety. In the end, Euthyphro finally answers that piety is what the God’s love or demand. In The Ethical Life, they modify the question asked by Socrates to “Is an action morally right because God commands it, or does God command an action because it is right?”. This question brings up many other questions.

Someone who would believe a statement such as this one would most likely be in agreement with the Divine Command Theory---the reason being that the main claim in this theory is, all that is morally right, is right because God commands it so. Therefore in order to believe in the Divine Command Theory, one would need to be a strong believer in God---and would truly believe that if there were no God, morality would be absent. With this in mind, if God is the creator of all that is morally right, and there turns out to be no god at all, then nothing is morally wrong or can be capable of being morally wrong---would be a statement that non-believers of the Divine Command Theory would believe, and believe that morality can exist on its own, with or without a God. In this paper I will focus on the Divine Command Theory in relation to the statement above, and those who would oppose this statement. In doing so, I will attempt to show why I believe that those opposing this statement have a more plausible view.

Plato’s Socratic dialogue the “Euthyphro” concerns itself with the virtuous concept of piety and pious acts. Socrates holds that in order to be considered an expert in piety, one must truly understand what it means to be pious. The desire to distinguish the pious from the impious leads to dialectical discussion ultimately resulting in Euthyphro’s proposition of three definitions, including the proposal that piety is what is loved by all of the Gods (9e). Whilst Euthyphro’s first definitions are immediately rejected by Socrates, on the grounds that they are superficial and contradictory, there is some validity to the argument that piety by definition, is what is loved by all Gods. By amending the definition to add an element of universality

The Divine and Command Theory states that an action is right or wrong if God commands it. Divine Command Theorists would say that anything God commands is morally correct, but do not like the fact that cruelty or suffering could be morally right. They believe that any command God gives, He is commanding it because it is morally correct. Meaning that this is the better option for us, but this is where I

The divine command theory is put forth for people who believe in God. The theory implies that good actions are morally worthy as a result of their being commanded by God. God, for these individuals, include people from the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faith. Individuals, because of these propositions, believe that it is their moral obligation to abide to God 's commands; which is, what is morally right is what God desires. This theory states the idea of objectivity between what’s right and wrong. If God makes

Divine command theory is a theory that believes that what is willed by God is morally right. Another portion of this is that in order for a belief to be morally right a knowledge of God is required. This knowledge of God being required can be seen as a weakness due to atheists and agnostics not being able to be morally right. Some of the more notable philosophers that brought about various forms of divine commandment Theory have been Saint Augustine, John Calvin, and William of ockham. A prime example of divine command theory in modern practice is The Ten Commandments among Christians. The Ten Commandments are from the Old Testament in the Bible and are a basic set of rules to follow. This basic set of rules that was set forth by the divine is commonly what this theory is based on.

The next definition given is that holiness is part of justice that is concentrated on by the gods (Plato & Jowett). Socrates uses examples of people attending to lesser beings for the sake of improving them, and shows that this is impossible with gods since they are beings above us. The word attending defeats this definition. This leads to another unclear definition that suggests that people somehow improve the gods, which we know from the concept of a god is impossible: holiness is that part of justice devoted to service or ministration to the gods; it is learning how to please them with words or deeds (Plato & Jowett).

The Divine Command Theory is the assertion in ethics that an action is morally right if, and only if, it conforms to God’s will. This premise ties together morality and religion in a manner that seems expected, since it provides a solution to arguments about moral relativism and the objectivity of ethics. On the other hand, in Plato’s Euthyphro, Socrates questions whether something is right because God commands it, or whether God commands it because it is right. The ethical implications of the Euthyphro problem suggest that the relationship between morality and religion might not be as straightforward as suggested by the Divine Command Theory.

The origin of Euthyphro’s Dilemma began with a discussion between Socrates and Euthyphro, Socrates wanted to learn the nature of piety in order to tell the court his action of corrupting the young with impiety was wrong and had come to a realization. With Socrates many lines of questioning for Euthyphro, one specific question lead to the creation of Euthyphro’s argument, known as Euthyphro’s dilemma, an argument that refuses the Divine Command Theory. To better understand Euthyphro’s argument, I will present the similarity between Euthyphro’s Dilemma and the Divine Command Theory, along with the two types of DCT and lastly, explain the version I believe is the most plausible.

The dialogue Euthyphro, written by Plato, has many functions. The rational discussion urges us to question the ultimate problems of the human existence; to examine human life. The conversation between Socrates and Euthyphro, begs the question: are we to follow what society tells us is right or “pious”? Can Euthyphro bring his father to justice for an evil deed without fear of he himself committing an impious deed? Can we show proper respect to the gods with pious acts because it is what the gods love? Socrates argues that independence, from both the gods and a society that conforms ethics to religion, is the right path. He also argues that a traditional life dedicated to the gods may eventually result in impious behavior. The dialogue is much like a parable or a fable; a simple story used to

Socrates contrasts his position of authority drastically between his argument over piety in Euthyphro and his reasoning for staying in jail in Crito. At first, Socrates does not agree with the notion that pious actions can be easily determined by mortals and questions Euthyphro's knowledge of religion. However, Socrates begins to hold the law of Athens in such a devoted manner that he would be willing to not escape prison in order to obey. In Euthyphro, Socrates disproves Euthyphro's initial argument on the definition of piety as any concept that is agreeable to all the gods. Socrates asserts that this cannot be right since the gods have different opinions and argue all the time: “And do you really believe that the gods fought with one another,

Socrates was a moral philosopher who was accused of impiety and was about to be tried for a crime, the nature of which no one seemed to understand. The trial and death of Socrates has four dialogs known as the Euthyphro, the Apology, the Crito, and the Phaedo which describes the process of Socrates’ controversial and insightful trial that raises the questions about human morality. Within the story we learned that the relationship between morality and religion might not be as clear-cut as some might think, Socrates forces the witnesses of his trial as well as ourselves to come to conclusions which result in a paradox that conflicts with the individual beliefs of his audience. In the event in which, Socrates poses a question to himself and Euthyphro, an attempt to answer the question "What is piety?" It has a specific tie to the events in “The Trial and Death of Socrates”, for Socrates had been accused of impiety and was about to be tried for the crime of heresy. The Euthyphro dialogue was written twenty-four centuries ago, and its conclusion is devastating for the whole idea that holiness and morality are very well connected. The idea that, “if God does not make something good by commanding it, but rather instead identifies that which is good, what measurement of morality does he use to make this judgment?” If something is right because god commands it, then it follows that something would be just as right if God instructed differently. If god declares that it is right to

Divine Command Theory is a type of ethical relativism that states that morality is dependent on God’s will, and his will, and his way is holy, and will forever be no matter the situation. In other words as stated by Rachels, what God commands is what is morally right, and what God forbids is morally wrong (Rachels, 2001). Within this theory, it makes it known that morality cannot exist separately from God’s will.

The Euthyphro's Dilemma is this question. Does God will something because it is good, or is it good because God willed it? The Euthyphro's Dilemma is a dilemma that means that your blessings that you receive is because God willed it for you. Or you were doing good in your life, and God is blessing you for it. Everyone has their own view on this. In my opinion, this dilemma relates to me. This happens to me, I do not question the blessings he has give to me. I am kind, and warm loving person, who helps anyone in need. I say that doing good things help me and the person in the long run.

In his work Euthyphro, Plato introduces a religiously based moral code. This code, the divine command theory, stresses the pleasing of god in one’s moral actions. Plato’s characters, Euthyphro and Socrates, take turns in a debate defending and criticizing this theory. Its flawed nature is uncovered and we as readers are able to notice its advantages and disadvantages. Using these criticisms, revisions to the divine command theory have been made. After analyzing the divine command theory and noting both its advantages and its critiques, I largely agree with the criticisms that are made about it. However, with certain revisions, it can be transformed into a reliable and successful philosophy.