Chapter Two: Ethical Relativism Ethical Relativism holds that there are no objective moral principles, but that such principles are human inventions.

Ethnocentrism  The prejudicial view that interprets all of reality through the eyes of one's own cultural beliefs and values

Moral Objectivism  The view that there are universal and objective moral principles valid for all people and social environments.

Ethical Nihilism  The doctrine that holds that there are no valid moral principles that exist.  Morality is a complete fiction.

Two Main Forms of Ethical Relativism  Subjective ethical relativism (Subjectivism): –All moral principles are justified by virtue of their acceptance by an individual agent him- or herself  Conventional ethical relativism (Conventionalism): –All moral principles are justified by virtue of their cultural acceptance

Subjective Ethical Relativism  Morality depends not on society, but rather on the individual.  Morality is like taste or aesthetic judgment.  Morality is in the eye of the beholder.  Does not help the minimal moral aim of preventing a Hobbesian state of nature  Implicitly assumes moral solipsism, a view that isolated individuals make up separate universes

The Diversity Thesis  What is considered morally right and wrong varies from society to society, so there are no universal moral standards held by all societies  An Anthropological theory that acknowledges that moral rules differ from society to society  Sometimes referred to as cultural relativism

Dependency Thesis  All moral principles derive their validity from cultural acceptance  Asserts individual acts are right or wrong depending on the nature of the society in which the occur  Morality must be seen in a context that depends on the goals, wants, beliefs, history, and environment of the society in question

Conventional Ethical Relativism  This view states that there are no objective moral principles, but that all valid moral principles are justified by virtue of their cultural acceptance.  This view recognizes the social nature of morality.  Treats the principle of tolerance as an absolute moral principle

Criticisms of Conventional Ethical Relativism  Undermines important values  Leads to subjectivism  Moral diversity is exaggerated  Weak dependency does not imply relativism

The Indeterminacy of Language  The indeterminacy of translation argument  Holds that languages are often so fundamentally different from each other that we cannot accurately translate concepts from one to another  Holds that language is the essence of a culture and fundamentally shapes its reality  Seems to imply that each society's moral principles depend on its unique linguistically grounded culture

Conclusion  Subjective ethical relativism seems to boil down to anarchistic individualism  Conventional ethical relativism fails to deal adequately with the problem of the reformer, the question of defining a culture, and the whole enterprise of moral criticism  Unless moral objectivism can make a positive case, relativism may survive criticisms