G12

HUMSS
Understanding Culture Society & Politics
QUARTER 1: WEEK 3
Lesson No. 3

Capsulized Self – Learning

Empowerment Toolkit

Schools Division Office of Zamboanga City

Region IX, Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga City
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HUMSS-UCSP (Quarter 1, Week 3)
Lesson No. 3

CapSLET
Understanding, culture, SOCIETY & politics

Subject & UCSP

QUARTER 1 WEEK 3 DAY
Grade Level G12 dd/mm/yyyy
CONTENT Ethnocentrism & Cultural Relativism
MOST
ESSENTIAL 1. Explain the importance of cultural relativism in attaining
LEARNING cultural understanding.
COMPETENCY

KNOW AND UNDERSTAND

CONTENT STANDARD: Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism as orientations in viewing
other cultures.

CHECKPOINT: How cultural relativism attained cultural understanding?

CULTURAL RELATIVISM

CULTURAL RELATIVISM IN ATTAINING CUTURAL UNDERSTANDING

The Cross-Cultural Relationship is the idea that people from different cultures can have
relationships that acknowledge, respect and begin to understand each other’s diverse lives.
People with different backgrounds can help each other see possibilities that they never thought
were there because of limitations, or cultural proscriptions, posed by their own traditions.
Traditional practices in certain cultures can restrict opportunity because they are “wrong”
according to one specific culture. Becoming aware of these new possibilities will ultimately
change the people that are exposed to the new ideas. This cross-cultural relationship provides
hope that new opportunities will be discovered but at the same time it is threatening. The
threat is that once the relationship occurs, one can no longer claim that any single culture is
the absolute truth.
Cultural relativism is the ability to understand a culture on its own terms and not to make
judgments using the standards of one’s own culture . The goal of this is promote understanding

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of cultural practices that are not typically part of one’s own culture. Using the perspective of
cultural relativism leads to the view that no one culture is superior than another culture when
compared to systems of morality, law, politics, etc. [11] It is a concept that cultural norms and
values derive their meaning within a specific social context. This is also based on the idea that
there is no absolute standard of good or evil, therefore every decision and judgment of what is
right and wrong is individually decided in each society. The concept of cultural relativism also
means that any opinion on ethics is subject to the perspective of each person within their
particular culture. Overall, there is no right or wrong ethical system. In a holistic understanding
of the term cultural relativism, it tries to promote the understanding of cultural practices that
are unfamiliar to other cultures such as eating insects, genocides or genital cutting.

Importance of Cultural Relativism

Cultural relativism is the principle that an individual person’s beliefs and activities should
be understood by others in terms of that individual’s own culture. A key component of cultural
relativism is the concept that nobody, not even researchers, comes from a neutral position. The
way to deal with our own assumptions is not to pretend that they don’t exist but rather to
acknowledge them, and then use the awareness that we are not neutral to inform our
conclusions.
An example of cultural relativism might include slang words from specific languages (and
even from particular dialects within a language). For instance, the word “tranquilo” in Spanish
translates directly to “calm” in English. However, it can be used in many more ways than just as
an adjective (e.g., the seas are calm). Tranquilo can be a command or suggestion encouraging
another to calm down. It can also be used to ease tensions in an argument (e.g., everyone relax)
or to indicate a degree of self-composure (e.g., I’m calm). There is not a clear English translation
of the word, and in order to fully comprehend its many possible uses, a cultural relativist would
argue that it would be necessary to fully immerse oneself in cultures where the word is used .

To avoid judging the cultural practices of groups that are different to yours, we can use
the cultural relativism approach. Cultural relativism refers to not judging a culture to our own
standards of what is right or wrong, strange or normal. Instead, we should try to understand
cultural practices of other groups in its own cultural context. For example, instead of thinking,
“Fried crickets are disgusting!” one should instead ask, “Why do some cultures eat fried
insects?”. You may learn that fried crickets or grasshoppers are full of protein and in Mexico, it
is famous Oaxaca regional cuisine and have been eaten for thousands of years as a healthy food
source!

Some people worry that the concept of culture can also be abused and misinterpreted. If
one culture behaves one way, does that mean all cultures can behave that way as well? For
example, many countries and international organizations oppose the act of whaling (the fishing
of whales) for environmental reasons. These environmental organizations say that there are
not many whales left and such fishing practices should be stopped. However, other countries
argue that whaling is a cultural practice that has been around for thousands of years. Because
it may be part of a country’s oceanic culture, this country may say that such a cultural practice
should not be opposed based on cultural differences, say, by an inland country that does not
understand. Who gets to define what a moral cultural behavior is? Is whaling immoral? Two

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HUMSS-UCSP (Quarter 1, Week 3)

different cultures may have very different answers, as we saw in the above example. Another
more extreme instance would be female genital cutting in some parts of the world. Locally, it is
argued that the practice has cultural roots, but such a practice has raised concerns among many
international human rights organizations.
Anthropologists say that when we think about different cultures and societies, we should
think about their customs in a way that helps us make sense of how their cultural practices fit
within their overall cultural context. For example, having several wives perhaps makes
economic sense among herders who move around frequently. Through such an understanding,
polygamy makes cultural sense.

BE ABLE TO DO
Let’s Practice!

Activity: ESSAY

Directions: Explain briefly & concisely.

1. What is the importance of cultural relativism?

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2. How does cultural relativism attained cultural understanding?

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HUMSS-UCSP (Quarter 1, Week 3)

Practice pa more!

Activity2: POSTER MAKING

Instructions: In your daily life as a Student, draw examples of cultural relativism inside the box.
After drawing it, explain briefly your concept on the importance of cultural relativism.

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REMEMBER
Key Points
 Cultural relativism is the belief that the concepts and values of a culture cannot be
fully translated into, or fully understood in, other languages; that a specific cultural
artifact (e.g., a ritual) has to be understood in terms of the larger symbolic system of
which it is a part.
 Cultural relativism is the principle that an individual person’s beliefs and activities
should be understood by others in terms of that individual’s own culture

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HUMSS-UCSP (Quarter 1, Week 3)

TRY
Let’s seeofhow
importance much
Cultural have you
Relativism learned today!
in attaining

ESSAY WRITING

DIRECTIONS:. Discuss briefly the importance of cultural relativism in attaining cultural

understanding.
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https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Sociology/
Book%3A Sociology(Boundless)/03%3ACulture and Society/
3.1E%#A Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
REFERENCES
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/culturalanthropology/chapter/cultural-
relativism/#:~:text=Cultural%20relativism%20is%20the%20ability,part%20of%20on
e's%20own%20culture.
Antonio P. Contreras, PhD, et al. Understanding Culture, Society & Politics
LEARNING RECIL DELA CRUZ-LUNA
RESOURCE ABDUL A. SURAIN
WRITERS ZAMBOANGA CITY HIGH SCHOOL-INTEGRATED SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
This material is not intended for uploading nor for commercial use but purely
DISCLAIMER
for educational purposes and for the utilization of Zamboanga City Division
OF LIABILITY
only.

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