Widespread Moral Errors and Relativism Lori-Ann Racki SOC120- Guide to Ethics and Cultural Responsibility Dr . Megan Reid November 12, 2012 Universal Moral Errors and Relativism In the content “Some Moral Minima”, Lenn Goodman argues that there are particular moral wrongs that are universal. He details four areas he feels are regions of universal moral wrongs in detail.
Morality have been an issue that lots of societies across the world have been looking to understand and contend with for any very long time.
Through this paper Let me explain the way i agree with Goodman on the belief that certain everything is and should be considered simply wrong universally. Let me also check out the challenges Goodman shows to relativism by using specific examples of these challenges. Let me discuss the way i think there ought to be such common moral requirements and defend these answers. I will after that be concluding that though I agree with Goodman’s discussion, the theory of relativism makes one reevaluate the rational reasoning of moral minima and if it is possible to acquire universal meaningful wrongs recognized by almost all societies and cultures.
In Goodman’s debate he confirms four common and important things which might be considered certainly not acceptable and wrong in society- meaningful minima. The first is genocide which usually also includes critical induced famine and germ warfare. The second reason is terrorism which also includes kidnapping and child labor force which include using them because child players. The third category is polygamy which can include slavery and incest. The last category this individual covers can be rape and female genital f�lure (Goodman, 2010, p. 8). I would undoubtedly agree and promote these same statements as Goodman describes. I might say that most of what Goodman has discussed in his arguments would be deemed by many civilized societies as functions that deny human beings all their rights to live a comfortable lifestyle and these acts will be considered wrong and immoral to these communities. Therefore , I would say that Goodman was right and accurate to create this kind of list of ethical wrongs that could and do influence many communities.
Of course , Goodman’s statements have got and will be inhibited with important thought simply by those who try to challenge the facts he has presented. We all do are in a world in which everything can be subject to several types of interpretation, or perhaps relativism which usually as described by Mosser is “relativism is the concept that one’s values and values are understood in terms of your society, lifestyle, or even a person’s own specific values” (2010, chap. 1 ) 8).
Consequently , some of Goodman’s beliefs confront some of the current cultural customs and customs that have been regarded acceptable in certain societies. For instance, terrorism, towards the ones which might be involved with this act it is not necessarily wrong because they are doing it in some instances to get a kind of moral pass by jeopardizing self-immolation, they can be willing to question of themselves what they consider from others. These terrorists think that they are really getting presented glory and God’s backyard for their take action in order to remove their earlier and simplify their foreseeable future (Goodman, 2010, p. 9). Another model would be to say that polygamy can be universally incorrect, would be very controversial since in many countries it is far from only approved but offered within their lifestyle. In the United States, polygamy is considered incorrect and is illegitimate, but in a village such as Northern Ghana, the village chief provides 11 wives or girlfriends and this is acceptable in the culture (Mosser, 2010, buck. 1 . 8). In this example the perception of right and incorrect is dependent for the person contending with it and the cultural beliefs that they belief in.
Another comparable example can be Goodman’s declaration that feminine genital escarre is simply wrong is susceptible to different interpretations dependent upon cultures and customs in different communities. In some African societies this kind of act is carried out to a young child to prepare her for womanhood and is considered an act of advantage. This action is considered a rite of passage that has been deeply entrenched into many of these African customs and communities.
Therefore , concerning this become immoral is extremely controversial and is subject to a wide range of interpretation based upon the tradition and culture trying to translate it. When it comes to the illustrations within this daily news, it is obvious that there is not just a simple reply to whether there should be universal moral requirements. For me, I do believe that we should have some universal moral requirements as human beings, however when you study different cultures and societies it might be shocking to find out that what we should consider being wrong generally is applied in some cultures as usual behavior.
While described terrorism would be deemed wrong and immoral to a lot of people in the world because the man life is deemed sacred, but for those who try this to fulfill what they consider all their religious responsibility, it is not wrong but predicted. Polygamy would also be regarded as by many like a wrong thing to do because it demoralizes and dehumanizes woman, this makes woman objects of ownership rather than an individual human being. Yet for people who live in communities such as the Muslim society and the Northern Bekwai, ghana village, it is far from just acknowledged as the proper thing to do nonetheless it can also be encouraged by the contemporary society members.
Woman genital traumatisme is another area that many civilized societies would consider incorrect and immoral to do since it hampers every sexual pleasure for the feminine, and could trigger sickness or even death if not completed properly. However for those created into these types of African and also other societies, that they consider this take action a transitional phase as well as a approach to prevent female from being promiscuous and having extra marital affairs and therefore it is the way to go.
In conclusion, though I do agree with Goodman there are certain issues that are merely wrong, it truly is almost impossible to think that there may be such common moral requirements or meaningful minima. Realistically I believe that there should be common moral requirements throughout the world because of the cultural and society values that I possess gained during my life. Thinking objectively even though, I think we need to accept the truth that nobody man or woman can easily stipulate the rules of correct and incorrect for all civilizations and societies throughout the world because of the accepted theory of relativism.
If we were to give one man the right to figure out what is universally wrong, and what common morals needs to be then we might be giving up all the rights of individual’s to live by their own ethnical beliefs. It truly is human nature to question precisely what is morally proper or what is morally incorrect, but no one person really can ever end up being one hundred percent ideal. Therefore , would it make sense for us to accept the ideas and beliefs of what is right or wrong given to all of us by one individual? I no longer believe that we are able to agree to this kind of either logically or morally.
I believe that relativism is definitely ultimately one of the main reasons why widespread moral minima will not be capable of being accepted by world in general. References: Goodman, L. Elizabeth. (2010). Some Moral Minima. Good Contemporary society Journal, 19(1), 87-94. Recovered from: http://web. ebscohost. com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=e88efb93-bef5-4563-96c8-5c37daa7eb0e%40sessionmgr115, vid=4, hid=105 Mosser, K. (2010). Introduction to values and cultural responsibility. San Diego, Bridgepoint Education, Inc. retrieved from https://content. ashford. edu/books/AUSOC120. 10. 2/sections/ch00
