Cultural Relativism: A Study Of Cultural Differences
Culture is a system of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people, it may also refer to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experiences, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies religion, notions of time roles, spatial relations, material possessions and objects by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving. The ideas, believes and values learnt by a group of people by virtue of their belonging to a society determines their nature as human beings. As such, some anthropologists are of the view that there is no universal ‘right way’ of doing things as human beings because the ‘right way’ will always be our way which may not be acceptable to other people by virtue of their shared beliefs and values. Bearing this in mind, it can therefore be said that the attitude of an informed human being towards the many other different people in society should be tolerance of other people’s …show more content…
The study of the differences that are existent among the various groups and individuals is known as cultural relativism. Cultural relativism is a theory developed by Franz Boas in the study of anthropology in the 1940’s (Ayodeji K., 2005). Cultural relativism identifies that there are differences in the way of lives of people and in view of these differences; some form of judgement is applied in dealing with individuals groups and societies that are different from one’s own society. Cultural relativism therefore implies that as human beings we should learn about the belief systems of the people
Conformity In Fahrenheit 451, By Ray Bradbury
723 Words | 3 PagesPeople who travel abroad seem to enjoy sending back reports on what people are like in various countries they visit. A variety of national stereotypes is part and parcel of popular knowledge. Italians are said to be "volatile," Germans "hard-working," the Dutch "clean," the Swiss "neat," the English "reserved," and so on. The habit of making generalizations about national groups is not a modern invention. Byzantine war manuals contain careful notes on the department of foreign populations, and Americans still recognize themselves in the brilliant national portrait drawn by Alexis de Tocqueville more than 100 years ago.
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628 Words | 3 PagesEvery day we use our culture. Whether it be to argue claims, express opinions, or make decisions, culture plays a part in each area. Culture is who we are, one’s identity, its extent is enormous over our views and actions. A person grows up surrounded with culture at a young age. This can affect how they learn and what they learn.
Cultural Relativism: Rites Of Passage
1580 Words | 7 PagesCultural relativism is the understanding of other cultures in their own terms. To achieve the understanding of the rituals used in the cultures of another, one must be able to look at them from an emic (insider) perspective. One must also be able to look at his own culture from an etic (outsider) perspective. The ability to look at one’s culture from the etic point of view will make it easier to explain the rituals to someone from a different culture, for example, rites of passage. Rites of passage are used to mark a life stage and are celebrated by tradition or religion, meant to separate a specific group.
Summary Of Monique And The Mango Rains
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James Rachel's Argument Of Morality Is Not Relative
1070 Words | 5 PagesThis is shown in “A Defense of Ethical Relativism” where Ruth Benedict gives examples of different circumstances. However, as shown in the example of the eskimo female newborns and male eskimos those who believe in Cultural Relativism seem to get morals, and cultural distinctions confused. These tribal people have different ways of dealing with their relatives, one being no right than the
Ethical Issues In Cultural Relativism
926 Words | 4 PagesThe ethics of cultural relativism are different than traditional ethical theories mainly because cultural relativism dismisses morality. Cultural relativism is named so because the ethics of different cultures
Cultural Differences Argument For Moral Relativism
1178 Words | 5 PagesPhilosophy 2200C Taylor Pearl Paper #1 The Cultural Differences Argument for Moral Relativism In this paper I will be discussing the theory of the Cultural Differences Argument for Moral Relativism and also the flaws this theory holds. First I will explain the general idea of Moral Relativism, followed by two examples of cultural differences that are often cited to further explain this theory. After that I will discuss what the Cultural Differences Argument is for Moral Relativism.
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696 Words | 3 PagesPiedad Molina Professor Ana Hernandez LIT 2480 October 7, 2015 Culture is the set of traditions, beliefs, and values, which are characteristic of a certain population. Each country or region has different parameters to determine their culture. The predominant values in the population, the language spoken, religious beliefs, and the way they dress; all these manners influence in the creation of a culture and what is autonomous of its region. Within a country we can find different cultures or ethnicities, social status, education and region make a population differ from another. The exchange of cultural ideas, beliefs, and values with the youngest members of the community make it possible for a culture to survive and to keep the legacy.
Arguments Against Cultural Relativism
1020 Words | 5 PagesTherefore, different cultures with result in different moral codes. In that case, people should see matters from many aspects instead of having a general truth as the standard. A second reason why cultural relativism has a more logical way of reasoning is because it teaches us to keep in an open mind. This can be seen from the fact that people should respect and tolerate other’s culture since there is no universal truth that holds for all people. Taken together, these two arguments demonstrate the logical way reasoning of cultural relativism and highlight the advantage of the cultural relativism
Examples Of Cultural Prejudice In Bend It Like Beckham
1244 Words | 5 PagesThe Cambridge Dictionary considers Culture as "the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time". According to this, it can be said that culture is responsible for guiding society, under certain parameters, rules and customs that must be respected and shared among individuals in the same society; thus, there is no culture without being in a society; in the same way, there is no society without individuals interacting with each other. The coexistence in society has long been affected by two disintegrating elements called Prejudice and Racism, both with a high cultural content that have gradually deteriorated the development of the modern society. Prejudice has become one of the most common evils within modern society; people often have attitudes and beliefs, usually negative that tend to hurt others. It is
Cultural Relativism In Social Media
2321 Words | 10 PagesIn other words, “right” or “wrong” are culture specific, what is considered moral in one society may be considered immoral in another, and, since no universal standard of morality that exist, no one has the right to judge another societies custom (Ess, 2009). Cultural Relativism is closely related to ethical relativism, which views truth as variable and not absolute. What makes up right and wrong is determined solely by individual or the society (Ess, 2009). Since the truth is not object, there can be no standards which applies to all cultures.
Traditional Western Approach To Modern Psychology
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Ethical Relativism Strengths And Weaknesses Essay
2607 Words | 11 Pages(Luco, Week 3 Notes, p.9) Cultural Relativism is simply a combination of the following three theses: 1. The only criterion of moral truth or falsehood is the moral code of a cultural group. 2. A moral claim is true, relative to a culture’s moral code, if and only if the claim is generally accepted within that cultural
The Pros And Cons Of Ethnocentrism
1249 Words | 5 PagesEthnocentrism is a silent problem which many people are not aware of. Some scholars have defined ethnocentrism as “the making of judgements” based on criteria of one’s cultural groups. It is characterized by applying those criteria in judging other behaviors and belief of people who may be from the different cultural backgrounds. Bennett, a founding director and CEO of the Intercultural Development Research Institute (IDR Institute), has defined ethnocentrism as “assuming that the worldview of one’s own culture is central to all reality”. He also suggested that people who has ethnocentric mindset tend to use their own worldview to interpret other’s behavior and that the idea of a “universal truth” is usually based on one’s own value.
Examples Of Cultural Relativism
827 Words | 4 PagesThroughout this essay, cultural relativism will be questioned, but also supported in some ways. The idea of cultural relativism reminds me of a sociological term--ethnocentrism--that essentially means the opposite. Ethnocentrism is essentially a bias about your own culture against other cultures. One can only see their culture (usually as dominant to the others), rather than attempting to see the perspective of whatever culture is in question. An example of real-life cultural relativism is female circumsition or clitordectomy.
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