In the following essay, I will examine a famous question posited by Socrates regarding piety in the Euthyphro, commonly referred to as the “Euthyphro dilemma”. To begin, I will examine the context of the Euthyphro dilemma to understand its meaning. As a dilemma, there are two possible answers and I will examine the ramifications of each choice, as well as offer a brief defense. To conclude, I will utilize the knowledge gained from the aforementioned topics to prove that an action is pious because it is loved by God.
The Euthyphro is a Platonic dialogue between the character for which the dialogue is entitled, Euthyphro, and Socrates, a Greek philosopher. Although there is a rather lengthy discussion leading up to the introduction of Euthyphro’s dilemma, I will not discuss it, as it lies outside of the scope of my essay. At marginal pagination 9e1, Euthyphro gives a reformed…show more content… If one were to compare justice and piety, one would find “where there is piety there is also justice, but where there is justice there is not always piety, for the pious is a part of justice.” By now it is obvious that the two seem to be closely related, but what is the difference? Socrates says “the [good] and pious the part of the just that is concerned with the care of the gods, while that concerned with the care of men is the remaining part of justice.” Indeed, by caring for the gods, one is doing what is pious, as well as what is just. By caring for men, one is also doing what is just. This is the logical conclusion to option one of the Euthyphro dilemma: the just and the pious are the actions of caring for our fellow man and the gods,