Socrates’ Questshould be able to list the properties of goodness without refer-
ence to God. And so the argument goes round and round.
What is salient in Plato’s account of it in the Euthyphro,
though, is that Socrates does not pose any arguments like this
at all. It apparently never occurs to him, or Euthyphro, that
the dilemma is a challenge to the gods. This could be put down
to a number of things. Perhaps the pressing matter in the dia-
logue is not whether the gods exist but whether Euthyphro
should prosecute his father. Though the conversation broadens
out in other ways, so why not in this direction? Alternatively,
it might be thought that Socrates lived in a society in which
the existence of the gods was basically beyond question;
ancient Athenians did not experience the world as disen-
chanted as we, it is said, do today. But, as already described,
agnostic and atheistic ideas did circulate in ancient Athens, so
it is signifi cant that Plato does not choose to make something
of them here.
Personally, I think that Socrates does not see the dilemma as
troubling vis-à-vis the gods because of his conviction about the
uncertainty of the human condition. This implies, fi rst, that he
thinks that no one, with any seriousness, can presume to know
what may or may not cause a divinity a sleepless night. And,
second, it implies that what is far more obvious to him is that
the dilemma should be troubling to human beings. Whatever it
may be to be a god, it is human beings who must grapple with
what it means to be good, not them.
The dialogue ends inconclusively, as they usually do.
Euthyphro is troubled by Socrates’ line of thought, but rather
than trying to come to terms with what it might mean for his
dogmatism, he hurries off, stung. Whether he continued with
the prosecution of his father we do not know. We can, though,
ponder some more of what it suggests about Socrates’ approach
to theology and how that connects with his way of life.
First, it implies that Socrates was not very interested in
debates about whether gods exist or not. Perhaps he sus-
pected that when conducted as a knock-out between a theist