The Challenge of Cultural Relativism

 James Rachels makes an interesting point in his essay "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism".  In his essay he makes the point that different cultures have different moral codes.  He says that "What is thought right within one group may be utterly abhorrent to the members of another group and vice versus.  He gives the example of the Greeks and of the Callatians and how they handle their dead.  The Greeks cremate their dead while the Callatians eat their dead.  What is acceptable in one culture may not be acceptable in another.  At the same time there is no way to decide what is right and what is wrong.  There is no way to measure or test what is wrong or right because there is nothing to compare it to. It goes back to James Rachels argument that different cultures had different moral codes therefore neither one or the other is correct.  No culture or group of people is better than the other or as Rachels put it "If we assume that our ideas of right and wrong will be shared by all peoples at all times, we are merely naive".

This argument by Rachels can be related to our hero stories.  When reading Things Fall Apart and Beowulf  we were at times confused because we didn't understand the culture of the people in the story.  At the same time if these characters were able to meet us and observe us they would find our ways and cultures strange.  They are strange because we are not accustomed or exposed to them as often as these characters are.

Rachels brings up homosexuality in his essay.  He says that because we have been taught that homosexuality is "immoral" is the reason why some of our fellow human beings believe that gay people are "different" and are seen as aliens, simply because they like people of the same sex, something that they can not control.  The argument that they choose to be gay is obscured.  Who in their right mind would choose to be bullied, harassed, and treaty unfairly. I'm sure if gay people were able to choose to to be attracted to persons of the same sex or not, they would choose not to.  This way they would be able to avoid all the torment that they go to on a daily basis.  It is time for our government to include EVERYONE; to grant them one of the basic human rights, to be able to love and wed whom ever they want while at the same time be protected under the law as my marriage would.



J-Dog OUT