Mod 5

• Absolutism

  Maintains that there are absolute truths and, especially, absolute moral truths to which all human beings must adhere if they are to be moral
• Relativism

  Maintains that there are no absolutes of any kind, but that everything, especially morality, is "relative" to specific cultures, groups, or even individuals
• Absolute


  Perfect in quality; complete; not limited by restriction or exceptions; not to be doubted or questioned—positive, certain, unconditional
• Relative


  There are no values that cut across all cultures and peoples that are not relative to the specific place or person in and by which they are held
• Anthropological "facts" cited in support of cultural relativism


  • Extreme variation in customs, manners, taboos, religions, etc. from culture to culture
  • Moral beliefs and attitudes are learned from cultural environments
  • People in different cultures believe their morality is the one true morality
• Anthropological "facts" cited in support of cultural absolutism

  • Similar moral principles exist in all societies
  • People in all cultures have similar needs
  • Great many similarities in situations and relationships existing in all cultures
  • Great many similarities in sentiments, emotions, and attitudes
• Just because cultures differ about what is right and wrong does not mean that one culture is right whereas another is wrong
• Just because a belief is learned from or accepted by a culture does not mean that it is true or false or that truth is relative only to specific societies
• Just because moral principles are similar in all societies does not mean that they are valid or absolute
• Even if people have similar needs, sentiments, emotions, and attitudes, there is still a question of whether these should or should not be satisfied
• Just because there are similarities in cultural situations and relationships, it does not mean that these are the only morally correct situations and relationships in existence or that they are morally correct at all
• Proposition


  Meaningful statement describing a state of affairs (occurrences, events, or happenings)
• Truth


  Applies to propositions that are either true or false
• A true proposition describes a state of affairs that was, is, or will be occurring
• A false proposition describes a state of affairs that did not occur, is not occurring, or will not occur
• Only propositions are true or false, never states of affairs - they either occur or do not occur
• Truth is absolute and not relative to belief, knowledge, person, place, or time
• Types of propositions


  • Analytic propositions (absolute truths known from definitions and meanings)
  • Internal sense or internal state propositions (known to be true from experience)
  • Empirical or external sense propositions (describe external world states of affairs)
  • Moral propositions (about morality or with moral import)
• Moral propositions are empirical and rational in form, found in the larger class of empirical propositions
• Some philosophers say moral statements are not propositions at all, just emotive utterances, or that they cannot be known to be true or false because not based on fact
• We must move from the concept of absolutes to that of "near or almost absolutes", or "basic principles" to match propositions with the complexity of human thoughts, feelings, and actions
• Basic principle or near/almost absolute


  Should be adhered to unless some strong justification can authorize an exception to it, as it is based upon an absolute moral proposition
• The practice of "tsujigiri" (trying out a new sword by slicing a random traveler diagonally) in Samurai culture raises questions about ethical relativism and moral isolationism
• Moral absolutism is the ethical belief that certain actions are intrinsically right or wrong, regardless of the context or consequences.
• Aristotle also held onto some form of absolutism by believing that certain things were true regardless of what people thought about them.
• Plato was an absolutist who believed in objective reality and eternal forms (ideas) that exist independently of our perceptions.
• The debate between absolutists and relativists has been going on since the beginning of philosophy.
• Absolutists believe that moral principles apply to all people at all times, regardless of cultural differences.
• Relativists argue that what is true depends on the context and perspective of the individual or culture.
• The absolutist view is that there are objective truths, which can be known through reason or revelation.
• Moral absolutism can lead to clear ethical guidelines but may also be criticized for being inflexible in complex situations.
• Moral absolutism often relies on universal moral principles or divine commands to determine the morality of an action.