Cultural relativism is the theory that there is no absolute right and wrong, and behaviors and beliefs must be evaluated according to each culture’s standards. Proponents argue it encourages neutrality and reduces ethnocentrism, while critics argue it ignores the notion of good and evil transcending cultural differences. Franz Boas introduced the theory to remove biases from scientific study. It has applications in philosophy, religion, politics, and ethics, including moral, cognitive, and aesthetic relativism.
Cultural relativism refers to a theory that holds that there is no absolute right and wrong. Instead, morals, standards and behaviors that vary between cultures must be taken into consideration. The idea is based on the principle that no culture can define right and wrong for all other cultures, but that behaviors and beliefs must be evaluated as good or bad according to each culture’s standards.
Proponents of cultural relativism argue that the philosophy encourages neutrality and reduces ethnocentrism from examining different cultures. The benefit of exploring other cultures from this perspective is that we can assess their ethics and standards with a detached objectivity, which proponents say leads to greater understanding and tolerance.
Critics of cultural relativism argue that philosophy is bad because it ignores the notion that good and evil transcend cultural differences. Critics also argue that the theory is logically flawed because while it discourages us from judging cultures other than our own, it leads us to excuse behaviors and practices that should be condemned regardless of culture.
Cultural relativism was introduced as a theory by Franz Boas, an early 20th century German-American Jewish scientist. Boas is the father of modern anthropology and introduced the notion of cultural relativism when, in his early years of work, he was disturbed by the racial prejudices and intolerance that raged among other anthropologists. Boas sought to remove these biases from serious scientific study, then argued that every culture should be explored, studied, and evaluated against its own ethical standards.
Cultural relativism has applications in philosophy, religion, politics, and ethics. For example, moral relativism is the complementary theory that morality can only be evaluated within one’s moral code, and cognitive relativism is the theory that there is no objective truth, but various truths about the individual or a group of individuals. Aesthetic relativism is the theory that beauty is relative, often based on a set of cultural beliefs and historical context, and cannot be judged outside of those criteria. Examples are the women painted by the 17th-century Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens. The women in Rubens’ paintings represented the ideal of beauty of Rubens’ time, but would be considered overweight and unattractive to many 17th-century Western viewers.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
