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Chapter Summary: Two Kinds Of Ethical Relativism

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Recommended: Critique of ethical relativism

The chapter about ethical relativism presents another side of the way we can perceive morality. The author distinguishes between moral nihilism and ethical relativism. According to moral nihilism, moral goodness is either a fiction or meaningless and there are no moral truths in this theory. On the other hand, ethical relativists claim that mankind creates morality. This chapter focuses on the two kinds of ethical relativism: cultural relativism and ethical subjectivism. Cultural relativism claims that an act is right if it is considered right in the society in which it is preferred. For example, “X is good” = “X is approved of in my society.” If cultural relativism is to be believed then we could justify our actions by consulting the society. …show more content…

allow it.” Similarly an act is morally wrong if “I disapprove of it or my commitments forbid it.” For example, Caring is good = I like caring. “Subjectivists think that there are right answers in ethics, but that these are always relative to each person’s values. There is no superior moral code that can measure the accuracy of each person’s moral outlook.” When a person says that caring is good then that person’s value/belief says that caring is good and he likes caring. Someone else might say that caring is bad and he doesn’t like caring. But are either of them wrong? As long as they are being honest then they are both morally right. “Ethical subjectivism also illuminates the importance of being tolerant when one is engaged in ethical discourse because diverse ethical perspectives must be heard, understood, appreciated, and respected.” You don’t have to agree with that person’s every single ethical view if you strongly disagree with him/her; however, there is a responsibility to show respect toward that person for their moral standards. Just like cultural relativism, subjectivism also faces the same inconsistency. If every person is doing their job by following their values and commitments, then how do we know who is morally

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Every society has its own unique cultures in which people will have different ideas of moral codes. The diversity of these cultures cannot be said to be correct or incorrect. Every society has independent standards of ethic within their society and these standards are culture-bound. Cultural Relativism has a perception in which rightness or wrongness of an action depends entirely within the bounds of the culture. This theory opposes the belief in the objectivity of moral truth.

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