Cultural Relativism

1. Cultural Relativism • : A actions rightness or wrongness depends entirely on the attitudes of the culture a person finds him or herself to be in

2. An argument for cultural relativism • Different cultures have different moral codes • Therefore, there is no objective truth in morality. Right and wrong are only matters of opinion, and opinions vary from culture to culture.

3. Is this argument valid? • An argument is valid if whenever the premise is true, the conclusion must be true. • If we suppose that moral codes do vary from culture to culture, does it necessarily follow that moral truths also vary?

4. The argument is not valid. • The premise is about what people believe to be right or wrong. The conclusion is about what really is right or wrong. Compare: people believe different things about God and gods. Therefore, there is no objective truth about the existence or non-existence of God or gods.

5. Arguments against cultural relativism • If CR is true, then it is impossible to ever legitimately criticize the standards of another culture • If CR is true, it is impossible • If CR is true, the best way to determine what is right or wrong is just to survey what most people believe is right or wrong • If CR is true, one cannot say of former practices of one’s own society that they are worse or better.

6. Is there as much variation as there seems? • Different societies have different views about the legitimacy of infanticide. • But this might show that the conditions of the society’s are different—not that they value children differently

7. Rachels: There are objective standards because there are values that are necessary for a society to flourish. • No society could exist if it did not value children, or disallow murder, for instance.