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Understanding Ethical Relativism and Its Types

Oct 15, 2024

Ethical Relativism

Definition

  • Ethical Relativism: Also known as moral relativism, is the perspective that ethical or moral values and beliefs are relative to the individuals or societies holding them.
  • No objective right and wrong: Values and beliefs are not universally applicable; what is right for one person or society may not be right for another.

Types of Ethical Relativism

  1. Personal or Individual Ethical Relativism

    • Ethical judgments and beliefs are based on the moral outlook and attitudes of individual persons.
    • No objective standard of right and wrong: The individual is the basis of moral judgment.
    • Example: Inuit practice of abandoning the elderly during famines. An individual relativist would argue that outsiders cannot judge this practice as wrong as it is based on individual beliefs of the Inuit.

  2. Social or Cultural Ethical Relativism

    • Ethical values and beliefs vary from society to society.
    • Moral judgment is based on social or cultural norms.
    • Example: Ancient Indian practice of 'sati' (burning a wife alive on her husband's funeral pyre). A social ethical relativist would argue that such a practice is right within the context of that culture and cannot be judged by outsiders.

Reasons Supporting Ethical Relativism

  1. Diversity of Moral Values

    • Disagreement on ethical issues or basic moral values is evidence against objective truth.
    • Objective right and wrong is inconceivable for ethical relativists.

  2. Moral Uncertainty

    • Difficulty in knowing the morally right thing to do supports the idea that there is no objective right or wrong.

  3. Situational Differences

    • The variability of life situations among different people means that what is right for one may not necessarily be right for another.

Conclusion

  • Ethical relativism emphasizes the subjectivity of morals and the diversity of ethical beliefs across individuals and societies.

This concludes the whiteboard discussion on ethical relativism by PhiloNotes. For further details, refer to the transcript available at philonotes.com. Subscribe for more updates.

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