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Pakaluk
agreed that we have no time to lose. Or do you not recall this
Pakaluk: I—yes, I recall it. Very well. Which prompt interested you
Andrew: Number five was my favorite. The one that asked about Socrates’
religious views, as expressed in the Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito. 1
Pakaluk: “Are Socrates’ religious beliefs in tension with, or even
incompatible with, his commitment to reasoned inquiry” Is this the
question you mean
Andrew: Yes. Or, to put it a different way: these are the questions I mean.
Pakaluk: Plural How so
Andrew: Your question, as I see it, is really three. As written, the prompt
rests on two assumptions. It presupposes that Socrates had both “religious
beliefs” and a “commitment to reasoned inquiry,” and then asks about the
relationship between them. The assumptions do not pose a large problem,
as I am confident we will eventually agree (after some clarification, of
course) that they are justified.
Pakaluk: If my question rests on assumptions we both take to be correct,
where is the harm in that
Andrew: You have done no harm. You are a gentle man, Pakaluk. A gentle,
gentle man.
Pakaluk: Don’t touch me.
Andrew: Very well. Your question is not fallacious. But I propose that our
task will be easier if, instead of making suppositions, we ask outright: first,
what do we know about Socrates’ religious beliefs Second, how should
we characterize Socrates’ philosophical project After we dispense with
these, we will be prepared to tackle the question of whether, or how, his
religiosity interfered with his project as a whole.
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