Cultural Relativism
Cultural relativisms entail three distinct, but related philosophical positions. The philosophers who support these arguments show the existence of an all-encompassing and irresolvable moral disagreement between people and their traditions. In this case, it is possible to evaluate a particular belief as true or false relative to a specific culture of the set of moral standards. These thoughts lead to the conclusion that people should tolerate religions held by their peers. Although cultural relativism makes valid claims on the possibility of objective moral truth, this theory exaggerates the degree of diversity among cultures and promotes the establishment of brutal customs.
Cultural relativism opposes the existence of objective truth in ethics. Cultural relativists give accounts of different cultures like Greeks, Galatians, and Eskimos, to conclude that ethical standards vary from one culture to the other (Bush, 2016, p. 2). One community holds some values that appear wrong in others. The suppositions show the difficulty of having universal ethical ways of living. The Greeks believed that eating the dead was an unethical practice, which contradicted the customs held by the Galatians (Bush, 2016, p. 2). The example shows that different cultures have varying honorable codes. Besides, the case reveals an absence of ideal certainty in ethics. Therefore, cultural relativism, right or wrong, is an issue of opinion, which varies from one culture to the other.
On the other hand, the opposition to the presence of objective moral truth exaggerates the degree of diversity among cultures. There exists a core set of universal values that human cultures endorse (Bush, 2016, p. 5). This statement suggests that all humans have some common beliefs that govern their life. Such instances show the presence of objective truth in ethics. All people have trustworthiness, friendship, and courage, which show a presence of universal ethics (Bush, 2016, p. 8). This case implies that cultural relativisms overlook the shared values in different communities. Thus, cultural relativism’s main weakness lies in the overgeneralization of cultural diversity. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Cultural relativism fails since it seeks to promote inhuman cultures. For instance, this conjecture maintains that people should not judge the morality of their communities since they are valid (Bush, 2016, p. 10). However, some cultures, like eating the dead, may not appeal to all people. Communities who fail to support such lifestyles should oppose such cruel practices since they interfere with their social interests. A valid example is where some communities may value slavery (Bush, 2016, p. 11). Such civilizations may put in captivity individuals from cultures that oppose bondage. This case reveals that people should judge other cultures to avoid a conflict of interest.
In summary, cultural relativism makes valid claims on the possibility of objective moral truth. Different communities hold diverse beliefs that guide their lives. However, this theory exaggerates the degree of diversity among cultures and promotes the establishment of brutal customs. In this case, the philosophers who support cultural relativism oppose the presence of objective truth. However, all people share some values like friendship and courage. Besides, individuals have a right to object brutal cultures instead of tolerating them.
References
Bush, L. (2016). Cultural and moral relativism. Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_518-1