Ethics Lecture Four

Ethics – Lecture Four 9/11/05


‘Act’ consequentialism and nonconsequentialism – could both be called ‘relativistic’

‘Rule’ consequentialism and nonconcequentialism – could both be called ‘absolutistic’

(quote 1)

Ethical Relativism –

Ethical rules depend on social acceptance.

Absolutism or Ethical Absolutism –

The idea that there is only one correct answer to every ethical problem.


Eskimos – let there old people starve.

Spartans of ancient Greece and the Papua New Guineans believe that stealing is right.

Some tribes in Africa throw sick babies to hippopotamus.

Some cultures say homosexuality is okay – some not.

Some cultures allow men to have many wives – some not.

Ruth Benedict (anthropologist) describes a tribe in Melanesia that says that kindness and generosity are wrong – bad.

There are some societies that believe that it is right – good – to kill your parents when they get too old.

As the world gets smaller and smaller – it gets harder and harder to believe that there are ethical rules that could apply to every culture – everywhere in the world.

(quote 2)

Ethical relativism is the doctrine that the moral rightness and wrongness of actions varies from society to society and that there are no absolute universal moral standards binding on all men at all times. Accordingly, it holds that whether or not it is right for an individual to act in a certain way depends on or is relative to the society to which he belongs. – John Ladd, Ethical Relativism

If we analyze this passage, we can make the following argument:

1. What is considered right and wrong is different from society to society, so that there are no absolute or universal ethical rules held by all societies.

2. Whether or not it right for a person to act in a particular way depends on the society that you are part of.

3. Therefore, there are no absolute ethical rules that apply to all people everywhere and at all times.

The Diversity Thesis

What is considered right or wrong is different from society to society – there are no ethical rules that all societies accepts. This says that ethical rules are different from each society – studying each society it would be hard to come up with one ‘true’ group of ethical rules.

The Dependency Thesis

All ethics get their power from society’s acceptance. What is right and wrong in each society depends on what is important to that society.
(ie. staying calm in Thailand) – ethics are an expression of that culture – not something outside that particular culture.

Some people say that the same principle might be expressed in different ways: Asians show respect by covering the head and uncovering the feet – where Occidentals do the opposite.

Not only do different societies have different ethical rules – but ethical rules can be different within each society – or change in that society over time.

Slavery in the United States.

(quote 3)

diversity thesis + dependency thesis together = ethical relativism


There are two kinds of ethical relativism:

(quote 4)

Subjective Ethical Relativism (Subjectivism)

Conventional Ethical Relativism (Conventionalism)

Subjective Ethical Relativism (Subjectivism)

This is the belief that ethics depends – or is relative – not on society but on the person – the individual – in other words, ethics in only what I feel is right.

But if what is right – or good – is relative to what I feel – then there can be trouble – incoherent - so if we want to hold the view of ethical relativism – people who say that it has to be based in society or culture.


Conventional Ethical Relativism (Conventionalism)

This is the belief that ethical rules are made true only by their acceptance by society or cultures.

Tolerance – (mai pen rai) allow something to be that someone dislikes or disagrees with or doesn’t understand.

Anthropologist Ruth Benedict says of Conventional Ethical Relativism that it helps us to be more tolerant and accepting of other cultures and societies:

(quote 5)

“We shall arrive at more realistic social faith, accepting as grounds of hope and as new bases for tolerance the coexisting and equally valid patterns of life which mankind has created for itself from the raw materials.” – Ruth Benedict, Patterns Culture.

Another anthropologist, Melville Herskovits in his book, Cultural Relativism, says that ethical relativism brings about intercultural tolerance:

(quote 6)

1. If ethics is relative to its culture, then there is no independent basis for criticizing the morality of any other culture but one’s own.

2. If there is no independent way of criticizing any other culture, then we ought to be tolerant of the ethics of other cultures.

3. Ethics is relative to its culture or society.

3. Therefore, we should be tolerant of the ethics of other cultures.

This sounds good – but there are some problems – should we be tolerant of the ethics of societies like Hitler’s Germany – or killings and massacres of Pol Pot in Cambodia – what about ethics that we believe are wrong in our own societies – how could we change them – unless we can believe in a ethical rule that stands outside those societies – Australia and Aboriginal tribal law and domestic violence.

We need to ask this question: Are all societies so different in their ethical rules?

In his journal article, “Ethical Relativity,” for the Journal of Philosophy, write about what he says are ethical concerns which are similar in all societies and cultures:

(quote 7)

“Every culture has a concept of murder, distinguishing this from execution, killing in war, and other “justifiable homicides.” The notions of incest and other regulations upon sexual behavior, the prohibitions upon untruth under defined circumstances, of restitution and reciprocity, of mutual obligations between parents and children – these and many other ethical concepts are altogether universal.” – Clyde Kluckhohn, ‘Ethical Relativity,’ in Journal of Philosophy.


Absolutism or Ethical Absolutism

Can we make ethical rules that can apply to all societies and all cultures.

This is what Kant was trying to do – and we could say this is what ‘rule’ utilitarians are trying to do.

(quote 8)

“There is a great uniformity among the actions of men, in all nations and ages, and that human nature remains still the same, in its principles
and operations. The same events follow from the same causes. Ambition, avarice, self-love, vanity, friendship, generosity, public spirit; these passions, mixed in various degrees, and distributed through society, have been, from the beginning of the world, and still are, the source of all the actions and enterprises which have ever been observed among mankind … [History’s] chief use is only to discover the constant and universal principles of human nature, by showing men in all varieties of circumstances and situations, and furnishing us with materials, from which we may form our observations, and become aquainted with the regular springs of human action and behavior.” – David Hume, Essays: Moral, Political, and Literary.


(quote 9)

Ethical Absolutism – Allows no exceptions

Ethical Objectivism – Allows some exceptions

One absolutist position is Natural Law:

This is the idea that every human being has reason and that reason lets them discover the essential eternal laws for societies happiness and harmony.


(quote 10)

The key ideas of “Natural Law” are:

1. Human beings have an essential rational nature established by God, who designed us to live and flourish in prescribed way (this idea is from Aristotle and the Stoics)

2. Even without knowledge of God, reason, as the essence of our nature, can discover the laws necessary for human flourishing (from Aristotle; developed in the Middle Ages by St. Thomas Aquinas)

3. The natural laws are universal and unchangeable, and one should use them to judge individual societies and their positive laws. The ethical rules of societies that are not in line with natural law are not true ethical rules. (from the Stoics)


Ethical Objectivism

Ethical rules that people should generally follow – but they may be overridden by other ethical rules in some situations.

Ethical Objectivism offers some ethical rules that is says can be followed in most cases.

(quote 11)

1. Do not kill innocent people.
2. Do not cause unnecessary pain or suffering.
3. Do not steal or cheat.
4. Keep your promises.
5. Do not take away another person’s freedom.
6. Treat people equally.
7. Show gratitude.
8. Tell the truth.
9. Help other people.
10. Obey just laws.