Philosophical Concepts Forum

Instructions

You are going to discuss your thinking on concepts you read on the page (under the Welcome to Philosophy 202: Ethics modules, on the page).

Your initial post and peer reply should each consist of approximately 100 words.

Choose one or two concepts outlined and, in your own words, explain them as you would to someone entirely unfamiliar with philosophy. Be sure to include an example. Here is a sample:

• Relativism
  • What is right/good is determined by particular groups
  • Tends to avoid objectivism (there is some universal concept of right and wrong)

The philosophical term “relativism” is similar to the term “relative” in our daily lives. For example, saying “It’s hot out today,” in reference to the weather, is a claim about how the weather feels to you. Suppose someone responds, “No, it’s not hot out. It’s just right!” The feeling is relative to the individual. We can also think of “relative” in terms of families. A mother or father, brother or sister, etc., is a relative, that is, someone related in a specific way.

In philosophy, and more specifically in ethics, “relativism” is a view about right and wrong being relative to a group, culture, or individual. Relativism is contrasted with an objective view of morality. If morality is objective, it is universal, or it holds for everyone. So, if tipping a server is objectively good, it’s good for everyone. If you’re a sort of relativist, you might say that tipping is wrong, for example, in certain cultures, but not in others.