The 3rd definition of piety in Plato's Euthyphro is Euthyprho's own statement as follows, "What all gods love is holy and What all gods hate is unholy- (Plato 14). .
Socrates helps Euthyphro arrive at this definition by refuting an earlier statement that "what gods love is holy and what gods hate is unholy-. This earlier defintion did not work because it led to a problem. The problem was that one god loved "x-, for example, and another god hated "x-, that would lead to "x- being both holy and unholy. .
Euthyphro hence believes by adding the "all gods- to the third definition, the problem will no longer exist. Socrates further wishes to analyize the statement, "The point which I want to first understand is whether the holy is loved by the gods because it is holy, or holy because it is loved by the gods- (Plato 14). Socrates begins refuting the statement by certain examples. "Someone does not see an object because it is a seen object, it is a seen object because someone sees it. Someone does not lead an object because it is a led object, it is a lead object because somone leads it. Something is a carried object because someone carries it, someone does not carry the object because it is a carried object- (Plato 15). There is a certain distiction between carry and being carried, led and being led. The distinction is of cause and effect. The cause is carry/led, the effect is being led/being carried. One does not carry something because it is being carried. It is being carried because one carries it.
Applying this to piety, there might be some confusion to the cause and the effect. It must follow from our examples that "something being holy is what makes it loved by gods, and not something being loved by gods is what makes it holy-.
Part B Question 3.
Socrates tries to enlighten and teach his fellow citizens. However, there is a quite destructive side behind his methods. Socrates is a philosopher by profession and therefore will tend to pose questions and investigate their answers (Socratic elenchus).
