Characters:
Socrates:
	Has been charged with impiety by Meletus.
Euthyphro
	Has just deposed murder charges against his

own father for murdering a servant.
Setting:
Agora (central marketplace) of Athens, in front of

the the offices of the magistrate.


Summary of dialogue:
S: impiety and piety are opposite right?
E: Yes
S: What is pious, and what is impious?
E: Piety is to prosecute the wrongdoer, as I am

doing now.
	S: Do the gods fight?
	E: Yes
S: You have told me an example of a pious action.

What is the form that makes all pious actions

pious?
E: What is dear to the gods is pious, what is not

is impious.
S: The gods disagree on many matters, and so they

will disagree on what is pious and what is not

pious.
E: All gods will agree on some things.
S: Is this true: What is pious is what all gods

love, and what is impious is what all gods hate.
E: YEs
S: Is an action pious because it is loved by the

gods, or is it loved by the gods because it is

pious?
E: It is loved because it is pious. It is not pious

because it is loved.
S: There is a contradiction. "An action is pious

because it is loved by all gods." and "It is not

pious because it is loved by all gods." contradict

each other.

S: Does piety imply justice?
E: Yes
S: Does justice imply piety?
E: No
S: So piety is a part of justice. What part of

justice is piety?
E: piety is the part of the just that is concerned

with the care of the gods.
S: What do you mean by care
E: benefit of the object
S: So is piety meant to make the gods better.
E: No
S: Then what do you mean by care?
E: care in the way a slave takes of his master.
S: to what aim does service to the gods tend?
E: Many fine things
S: What is their main concern?
E: Pious actions preserve both private houses and

public affairs of state.
S: Is piety knowledge of how to sacrifice and pray?
E: Yes
S: To sacrifice is to make a gift to the gods, and

to pray is to beg from the gods?
E: Yes
S: So piety is the knowledge of how to give to and

beg from the gods?
E: Yes
S: So piety is a sort of trading skill between gods

and men?
E: Yes
S: What do gods benefit from our gifts?
E: We give the gifts of honor, reverence to please

them.
S: So what is pious is what is dear to the gods?
E: Yes
S: We have already shown the problems with this

statement.
E: It is time for me to go