Moral Relativism

People don’t always live by the same moral principles

Three Views of Ethics

Moral standard: consists of all moral principles and values that dictate what is

morally good or bad, right or wrong.

Objectivism: maintains that there can only be one universal moral standard.

Relativism: maintains that there can be different moral standards for different societies.

Subjectivism: maintains that there can be different moral standards for different persons

each is talking exclusively about moral principles and values

meta-ethical: none takes any stand on what actually is right or wrong

differences of opinion cannot show that moral principles themselves also vary between people.

Subjectivist - Someone acting through subjective beliefs

You can never assume that any moral principle that holds for you also holds for others.

Without that shared acceptance, the value of fairness itself loses meaning: We need objectivism

  • Instead of giving us a different version of morality, it gives us something very close to no morality at all.

we don’t need subjectivism to handle matters of moral con science.

Supporting Popular Relativism

Popular Relativism - Popular ethical worldview

Different moral standards hold for different societies; that is, relativism is true.

We have no compelling reasons in support of relativism

Those attracted to moral relativism often maintain that different societies have different moral beliefs and practices.

Against Relativism

moral reformers - people who oppose, on moral grounds, some of their society’s beliefs and practices.

Moral Progress - moving closer toward what the relevant standard says is best

Tolerance

Tolerance - the moral value that obligates us to respect the moral beliefs and practices of other people regardless of how we feel about them.

Since tolerance is so important, we ought to accept relativism rather than objectivism:

  1. The important moral value of tolerance requires that we respect the beliefs and practices of other societies.

  2. Relativism rules out the possibility of judging any particular society’s standard to be better or worse than others; objectivism allows for this.

  3. Judging a group’s moral beliefs and practices is not compatible with respecting their beliefs and practices

Tolerance is a strength of relativism

Pluralistic Relativism

Pluralistic relativism: maintains that different societies can have different but equally valid moral standards, though all share a common moral core