Socratic Irony
First, read this brief excerpt from one of Plato’s best-known dialogues, Euthyphro. If you would like to read the entire dialogue, click here: Plato’s Euthyphro(I will upload this reading).
After reading and reflecting on the assigned material relating to the questions, thoroughly respond to the question. These essay style journals should be 400-500 words long.
Here is your assignment:
Can you find any examples of irony in what either Socrates or Euthyphro says in this excerpt from the opening of Plato’s Euthyphro? To some Plato scholars, the entire passage is loaded with Socratic irony, but not all agree about this. Find what you take to be at least one case of what could be interpreted as verbal irony in this dialogue excerpt, and explain why you chose this passage. Then, think about how what might be taken as Socratic irony here is used for philosophical ends. Beyond rhetorical or dramaturgical purposes (e.g., character development), why would a philosopher use irony to convey philosophical themes or concepts?