not? Who decides where the line is drawn? What standing ground does one have when question the morals of another? Where is the benchmark? This essay shall examine the statement aforementioned‚ firstly by engaging with cultural relativism‚ then critically discuss cultural relativism and lastly examine the implications for educational practices in South Africa. With regards to the statement‚ it is first important to note the definition of morality. “Morality speaks of a system of behavior in regards
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Ruth Villagra The Cultural Differences Argument for Moral Relativism. Moral Relativism is generally used to describe the differences among various cultures that influence their morality and ethics. According to James Rachels‚ because of moral relativism there typically is no right and wrong and briefly states : “Different cultures have different moral codes.” (Rachels‚ 18) Various cultures perceive right and wrong differently. What is considered right in one society could be considered wrong
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9/30/14 MRA: “The Challenge of Cultural Relativism” In the text "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism‚" James Rachels breaks down and discusses the theory of Cultural Relativism by presenting the pros and cons of this theory. He exposes some of the shortcomings of the theory arguing that some of the claims are wrong and contradictory. The theory of Cultural Relativism states that “there is no such thing as universal truth in ethics; there are only the various cultural codes.” In other words‚ the
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United States Ethnocentrism People are naturally inclined to differ in their reactions to certain events. It is our experiences and backgrounds that create the opinions we have towards what we encounter. There is no one to answer the question of whose perception is right or wrong‚ because there is no right or wrong to the question being asked. The only time that perceptions receive this judgment is when perceptions are compared to each other. The United States of America has been comparing their
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Ethnocentrism is the propensity to look at the world from the standpoint of one’s own culture. Many claim that ethnocentrism occurs in every culture; as luck would have it‚ ethnocentrism may be something that all cultures have in common. (unknown) Ethnocentrism is a good thing and a bad thing. It’s great to be proud of your country and your heritage. Ethnocentrism can lead to social assimilation and strong personal group ties. We see a lot of ethnocentrism in the military and in our High Schools
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ethnocentric‚ and if so is it a bad thing? To answer that‚ one must understand what ethnocentrism is. According to Macionis (2004)‚ ethnocentrism is "the practice of judging another culture by the standards of one’s own culture". We are not born with culture; culture is a socially learned behavior‚ or set of values that a given groups holds as a norm and are considered to be true and right. It is these cultural norms that connect the individuals of the group‚ which make up a society. No society
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Cultural relativism is the view that all beliefs‚ customs‚ and ethics are relative to the individual within his own social context. In other words‚ right and wrong are culture-specific; what is considered right in one society may be considered wrong in another‚ and‚ since no universal standard of morality exists‚ no one has the right to judge another society’s customs. Morality is built within communal groups‚ for example a faith community e.g. a church. The morality of one social group is not better
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of people even get into debate on this subject. This is where the definition of ethnocentrism comes to play‚ which is how we tend to view other cultures based on how we compare it to our own culture‚ which makes us believe wrong things about that cultures or even judge that cultures in a bad light. But we should not do this because other cultures have their way of doing things for a reason. Like how culture relativism says that we she learn to judge other cultures by not our standard but theirs. Through
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Human Communication. A Publication of the Pacific and Asian Communication Association. Vol. 11‚ No.1‚ pp. 27 – 38 Overcoming Ethnocentrism through Developing Intercultural Communication Sensitivity and Multiculturalism Qingwen Dong University of the Pacific Kenneth D. Day University of the Pacific Christine M. Collaço University of the Pacific Qingwen Dong (Ph.D. Washington State University‚ 1995) is Associate Professor and Chair and Kenneth D. Day (Ph.D. Indiana University‚ 1980) is Professor
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the best form of civil disobedience that would against this type of social contract would be egoism. With this form of civil disobedience anyone would do what he or she feels is best for them‚ and in the end they will find what is best for them is what is best for all. The two other options for civil disobedience Subjectivism and Cultural Relativism have many short comings that would be less useful in dealing with a social contract like this. These short comings would make using these beliefs useless
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