Notice Board

The Philosophy Department Colloquium Series presents:

Title:  The Euthyphro Pseudo-Problem: On Viminitz, Plato and Question-Begging Assumptions
Guest Speaker:  Karl Laderoute
Date:  January 12, 2017
Time:  4:00 p.m.
Location:  B-730 (University Hall)

Abstract: 

Paul Viminitz (Lethbridge) has referred to the Euthyphro Problem as a “slam-dunk refutation of
Divine Command Theory.” I argue that Viminitz is incorrect. The Euthyphro Problem does not pose an insoluble problem for Divine Command theory. In fact, I argue that the Euthyphro Problem poses no problem for the consistent Divine Command theorist. Additionally, I argue that Viminitz’s own views are (likely) incoherent. Viminitz is a committed Contractarian. I make the case that a committed  Contractarian cannot endorse the Euthyphro Problem without contradiction.

This talk has three major segments. First, I will act as your guide on a brief tour of the moral
landscape (no pictures allowed!). We will explore some of the various positions held on moral issues, such as realist and anti-realist views on moral semantics and metaphysics. Second, we will examine the so-called Euthyphro Problem via an examination of Plato’s dialogue Euthyphro. I argue that, in the dialogue Euthyphro, the so-called Euthyphro Problem only poses an issue because of a question-begging assumption smuggled into the dialogue by Plato via the character of Socrates. The unwitting Euthyphro – Socrates’s interlocutor – agrees to a crucial assumption that, if he were consistent, he should have rejected. Mutatis mutandis, the same question-begging assumption lies at the heart of Viminitz’s formulation of the Problem for Divine Command Theory, an assumption that the  consistent Divine Command theorist should reject. Third, I argue that Viminitz’s broader views are (likely) incoherent. As a Contractarian, Viminitz is committed to rejecting the question-begging  assumption required for the Euthyphro Problem to pose an issue to the Divine Command theorist while simultaneously endorsing the Euthyphro Problem as an unassailable stumbling block for the Divine Command theorist. Has Viminitz contradicted himself, or have I misunderstood his views? Join us to find out.

Everyone is welcome.