Euthyphro Dilemma - DCT

Who created the dialogue ‘Euthyphro’ to criticise the divine command theory?

Plato

In the dialogue of Euthyphro who was sat outside the courthouse?

His teacher Socrates and Euthyphro

Why was Socrates going to court?

To defend himself against charges of accusations of corrupting the youth of Athens and not having the right beliefs about God that will ultimately lead to his death

Why was Euthyphro going to court?

To bring murder charges against his father

Why is Euthyphro prosecuting his father?

As Euthyphro is a divine command theorist and he believes it is the right thing to do because God commanded it

How was the Euthyphro problem created?

As Socrates asked 2 meta-ethical questions that have still not been answered

What is the first question in the Euthyphro problem?

Are actions right because God commands them?

What is the second question in Euthyphro problem?

Are right actions commanded by God because they are right?

What is the dilemma also referred as?

Horns

What is meant by the first horn/question/dilemma?

Accepting that God’s command alone is simply what makes something right suggesting He makes goodness and everything God commands is right

What do many suggest about the first horn?

It means morality could be different depending on what God feels like commanding so if God determines rightness and wrongness of everything just by saying then goodness and value becomes vacuous

What does the second horn/question/dilemma suggest?

God is not omnipotent because value doesn’t stem from him and instead it has been created by something else and God just uses it

What is meant by the second horn?

Something outside God binds him and his commands

What does the second horn mean in relation to God making commandments?

If there is a standard of goodness he has to stick to when making commandments then there must be things God cant command so ethical rules come from another source then why cant we go straight to that source and figure out morality like God did

What does the second horn suggest about God’s teaching and the Bible?

They are a shortcut to understanding the original source of knowledge

What does the Euthyphro problem mean about God?

He is either bound by a standard outside himself or His goodness doesnt really mean anything