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Concept Of Cultural Relativism

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Universal morality and cultural relativism

Student X

University of the People
PHIL 1404

Introduction
In some cultures, whenever we try to put in place procedures that allow the population to be regular, we find ourselves confronted with certain people who feel attacked because they are simply not in order. One can take as an example the case of Mordidas in Mexico City, where it is possible to take the money in the city, and then redistribute the money back. Goes straight into the officer's pocket. Based on what we have learned in this unit, we will try to answer the following questions:

1. What is cultural relativism, and how does the vision of ethics associated with it diverge from the traditional …show more content…

In each culture there are moral values which may not be considered the same for other cultures. Such differences may suggest that morality is only a question of cultural taste and that there are no universal moral principles, which brings us to the important ethical concept of "ethical relativism".

Cultural relativism is the theory that morality is relative to the norms of its culture. Whether an action is good or bad depends on the moral standards that are practical in this society. An action that is morally right in one society may not be in another. According to the relativist, there are no universally accepted moral standards applicable to any culture; the only moral norms that exist are those practiced by a given society.

2. The Mexico City process of getting and paying off a traffic ticket is different from the process in other countries. What values and advantages can be associated with the process in Mexico City? How can it be justified in ethical terms?

The process of obtaining and reimbursing a ticket in Mexico City is different from the process in other countries. The values are different and there are advantages associated with them. It contains the following values: Inconsistency, Ease, and …show more content…

The process is considered economically efficient, reducing intermediaries. This practice is accepted because police officers in Mexico and Haiti are less paid than in those in United States of America. Since this practice has been accepted, it no longer disturbs anyone and the government says it does not have enough money to run an effective judicial system. This process encourages corruption, makes the law subjective and almost non-existent.

Considering these facts one can say that cultural relativism has been well established in relation to traditional ethical theories, the corruption process is accepted based on the fact that one society has the possibility to pay its officers better and the other does not have the possibility to do, so is obliged to accept the corruption that is being made.
Values and morality are not specific to certain culture and corruption relative to another one. Cultural relativism is totally different from the traditional ethical theories, which is to formulate rules of action that everyone, people of all time, places and communities, must obey if they want to consider themselves ethically responsible. This is where the conflict is found, where one wants the rules to be specific to one culture and the other wants the same rules to be followed by all

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