Chapter 7: Ethics The Nature of Moral Inquiry: Is Morality Relative? Introducing Philosophy, 10th edition Robert C. Solomon, Kathleen Higgins, and Clancy Martin

What Is Morality? Morality gives us the rules by which we live with others Morality tells us what is permitted and what is not

Morality as “Coming from Above” Moral laws are often said to come from God They are often taught to us by our parents, who literally “stand above us” Morality is “above” any one individual or group of individuals

God and Morality Different people seem to think that God has given us different commands Should we follow God’s laws because they are God’s laws or because they are good?

The Appeal to Conscience What are the demands of conscience? Where do these demands come from? Morality is doing what is right, whether or not it is commanded by any person or law and whether or not one “feels” it in one’s conscience Morality involves autonomy--the ability to think (and act) for oneself and to decide for oneself what is right and wrong

The Problem of Moral Relativism Moralities vary between cultures and people But morality is supposed to be a set of universal principles; this set of principles should apply to all cultures and all people How can we justify making judgments about other societies’ morals? The problem of relativism

Philosophers generally distinguish between two theses: – Cultural relativism: do apparent moral differences between cultures have a similar basic moral principle, or are they fundamentally different? – Ethical relativism: if two moralities are fundamentally different, can both be correct?