GECC108

PREPARED BY:

MR.ARUTA, MS.DEGOLLACION,
MS.DUHAYLUNGSOD, NR.SEGARA,
MR.NECESARIO, MR.SAN
COLLEGE INSTRUCTORS
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
 Ethical Relativism

OBJECTIVE:
Discuss the theory of Ethical Relativism.
 Let’s Think!

How important is culture in

shaping our Moral Values?
• Culture undeniably plays a significant pseudo role within shaping moral behavior and
extends even further to social norms. Arguably, rather than defining our moral behavior
per se, it influences and changes our definitions of what ought to be deemed morally
acceptable by consistent exposure to it.

• Culture is “everything”. So in this important way, culture does matter to how people
behave and think.

• Culture indeed influences human behavior at any given society’s belief system, laws,
mores, practices. Languages and attitudinal variables which make a people unique from
others (Victor,2017).

• In spite of our cultural uniqueness and differences, people can still exercise their power
to choose what is morally right and morally wrong.
 THE RELATIONSHIP OF
CULTURE AND MORALITY
Cultures differ widely in their moral practices. Societies make their moral
choices based on their unique beliefs, customs, and practices. And, in fact,
people tend to believe that the “right” moral values are the values that
exist in their own culture.

Anthropologists point to a range of practices considered morally acceptable

in some societies but condemned in others, including infanticide, genocide,
polygamy, racism, sexism, and torture.

Differences in moral practices across cultures raise an important issue in

ethics - the concept of "ETHICAL RELATIVISM."
 The same action may
The theory that holds that
be morally right in one
morality is relative to the
society but be morally
norms of one's culture.
wrong in another. Each
That is, whether an action
culture establishes the
is right or wrong depends
basic values and
on the moral norms of the
principles that serve as
society in which it is
the foundation for
practiced.
morality.
Ethical relativism reminds us that different
societies have different moral beliefs and that
our beliefs are deeply influenced by culture. It
also encourages us to explore the reasons
underlying beliefs that differ from our own,
while challenging us to examine our reasons
for the beliefs and values we hold.
Individual or Personal Ethical Relativism
Ethical statements are relative to the individual. I have my
ethical views and you have yours, neither my views nor your
views are better or more correct. In a sense we are all equally
correct, insofar as whatever we believe is true, or looked at
differently, the idea of being more or less correct doesn’t apply
to moral beliefs, since that would assume that there is some
objective standard of right or wrong, independent of what I
might believe which would serve as a standard of judgment, but
that is exactly what relativism denies. This is sometimes called
ethical subjectivism.
Example 1: Sam and Andrew are
good friends, but Sam knows that Tardiness
Andrew is always late whenever
they make plans to do something.
e a b o u t
Sam thinks it’s wrong that
c o n c lu d
Andrew is such a tardy i g h t w
person;e
h a t m
W doesn’t think io r ?
whereas Andrew
’s b e h a v
A
much of it at n d
all, r e
andw he thinks
that Sam is being overly
sensitive.
We could say that Andrew’s behavior is wrong;
however, we would not say it is wrong in an
objective sense. Rather, we can say that
Andrew’s behavior is wrong, according to
Sam, who views Andrew’s behavior as wrong,
(given where Sam is situated in the context of
the world, and where he stands in relation to
Andrew).
Example #2:

A family man would be deeply guilty for committing

adultery. But a sexual libertarian simply finds this
an expression of personal freedom. Just why argue
about its right or wrong?
 Social or Cultural Ethical relativism
Ethical statements are relative to a given society. Although
societies may differ or disagree as to what is right or wrong, for
an individual to decide what is right or wrong, one must simply
look to the norms of the society in which they live. Right and
wrong simply IS what a given society says it is. And although a
society may believe that its views are the correct ones, cultural
ethical relativism insists that no society’s views are better or
more moral that any other society’s beliefs. For this reason, there
is no objective standard independent of what a society actually
believes against which its views might be evaluated.
Example #3: The Greeks Example #4: The Eskimos
believed it was wrong to see nothing wrong with
eat the dead, whereas the infanticide, whereas
Callatians believed it was Americans believe
right to eat the dead. infanticide is immoral.

Therefore, eating the dead Therefore, infanticide is

is neither objectively right neither objectively right
nor objectively wrong, nor objectively, and is a
and is a matter of opinion. matter of opinion.
 Determinants of moral values:

Cultural relativism Individual relativism

Customs Social upbringing
Tradition Social status
Language Desire
Ideology Emotion
Politics Personality (trait or type)
Religion Mood
Feeling
 Diversity of Moral Views Argument
Reasons(supporting arguments) for Ethical
Relativism
The actual fact that People and
Societies have and continue to
disagree about the moral issues, they
continue to hold different moral
beliefs. In short, the fact of
disagreement and differences in
moral beliefs is evidence for the
claim that there are no objective
moral truths, only subjective
moral beliefs.
Arguments against the aforementioned
reason for Ethical Relativism
The fact of disagreement can prove
nothing about the matter in dispute.
This is certainly the case in factual
matters. Disagreement does not
entail that the matter is wholly
subjective, no matter how much
disagreement there is.
 Moral Uncertainty Argument
Reasons(supporting arguments) for Ethical Arguments against the aforementioned
Relativism reason for Ethical Relativism

Despite our best efforts, we are In a complex moral situation, I may

often uncertain about what is the be uncertain about what is the right
right thing to do, especially in the thing to do. I may indeed have to
context of a dilemma, our judgment simply act according to my
seems to be very subjective, a conscience, i.e., what I believe to be
matter of personal opinion. In short, right. But this does not prove that
the fact that I do not know for certain morality is wholly a matter of mere
(objectively) in a given situation what is belief.
right, implies that there is no objective
standard; hence morality is relative and
subjective.
 Situational Differences Argument
Reasons(supporting arguments) for Ethical
Relativism
The actual situation in which people
live are often very different, it is
implausible to believe that there
could be one set of moral principles
or rules that are universally true for
all persons at all times. In short, given
the many differences in particular
circumstances, what we call morality must
be relative to the particular situation and no
objective or universally valid moral norms
exist.
Arguments against the aforementioned
reason for Ethical Relativism
A Relativist insists that moral norms
cannot be objective universally
true, because circumstances vary
too much. For example, a Relativist
might insist that given diverse
circumstances, the judgment that
“lying is always wrong” cannot be
absolutely true. For instance, lying
might be right in order to save a life.
 Toleration of Differences Argument
Reasons(supporting arguments) for Ethical
Relativism
People from different cultures have
different moral beliefs, one ought to
tolerate, i.e., not be critical of, these
beliefs. One ought not to think that
one view is better or more correct
than another, hence one should
adopt ethical relativism, which
entails that all moral beliefs are
equally correct.
Arguments against the aforementioned
reason for Ethical Relativism
This position is contradictory. We
might adopt tolerance as a moral
value, but if relativism is correct
than tolerance is only one value
among many. Moreover, if
relativism is true, why should I even
bother to listen to another person’s
moral beliefs, since by definition
their beliefs cannot be better or
more correct than my own beliefs?
 The Psychological Argument
Reasons(supporting arguments) for Ethical
Relativism
All of us human beings acquire our
moral beliefs by a process of
psychological conditioning. For this
reason, if we have been conditioned
differently, we would have different
moral beliefs. Hence, our moral beliefs
are neither true nor false, right or
wrong, for there is no such thing as
objective truth in ethics.
Arguments against the aforementioned
reason for Ethical Relativism
This argument is unsound and invalid.
How one acquires one’s belief does not
necessarily undermine its truthfulness
or validity. Just because something
comes from a dubious source, it does
not necessarily follow that it is false or
erroneous. It is quite deceiving to
believe that the matter of social
conditioning is all that there is in the
person’s moral or ethical development.
Therefore, ethical relativism;

• The doctrine that there are no absolute truths in ethics and that what is morally
right or wrong varies from person to person or from society to society.

• Different cultures have different moral codes. Therefore, there is no objective

‘truth’ in morality. Right or wrong are only matters of opinion, and opinions vary
from culture to culture.

• Ethical relativism is the theory that holds that morality is relative to the norms of
one's culture. That is, whether an action is right or wrong depends on the moral
norms of the society in which it is practiced.
• We are not always certain about the truth of our own moral beliefs. Therefore, we
have no right to say moral rules are universal or absolute.