CULTURE
WHAT IS CULTURE? ✔This is why symbols represent the
outermost layer of a culture.
In its etymological definition, culture
comes from the Latin verb, colere, which
means to cultivate, to inhabit, to honor. 2. Heroes are persons, past or present,
real or fictitious, who possess
characteristics that are highly prized in a
In its real definition, culture is: culture.
a. “a description of a particular way of ✔They also serve as models for behavior.
life, which expresses certain meanings
and values not only in art and learning but 3. Rituals are collective activities,
also in institutions and ordinary behavior.” sometimes superfluous in reaching
(Raymond Williams, The Analysis of desired objectives, but are considered as
Culture) socially essential.
b. “the way of life, especially the general ✔They are therefore carried out most of
customs and beliefs, of a particular group the times for their own sake (Ways of
of people at a particular time.” greetings, paying respect to others,
religious and social ceremonies, etc.).
4. Values are broad tendencies for
Manifestations of Culture
preferences of certain state of affairs to
1. Symbols are words, gestures, pictures, others (good-evil, right-wrong, natural-
or objects that carry a particular meaning unnatural).
which is only recognized by those who
✔Values can only be inferred from the
share a particular culture.
way people act under different
✔New symbols easily develop, old ones circumstances.
disappear.
✔Symbols, heroes, and rituals are the
✔Symbols from one particular group are tangible or visual aspects of the practices
regularly copied by others. of a culture.
✔The true cultural meaning of the
practices is intangible; this is
revealed only when the practices are are cultural values.
interpreted by the insiders.
>If there are many cultures, then cultural
values may differ from one culture to
another. This is called cultural relativism.
So, what has CULTURE got to do with
ETHICS?
>On the one hand, Ethics comes from WHAT IS CULTURAL RELATIVISM?
ethos, which means custom; on the other
>It is the view that all beliefs, customs,
hand, morality comes from mores, which
and ethics are relative to the individual
means norms.
within his own culture.
>Thus, the use of the terms, ‘custom’ as
>It is also the ability to understand a
the root for ‘customary’, and ‘norm’ as the
culture on its own terms and not to make
root for ‘normal’, lead to an inquiry of
judgments using the standards of one’s
what determines the customary and the
own culture.
normal.
✔Its goal is to promote understanding of
>That which is considered as the
cultural practices that are not typically
customary and the normal is understood
part of one’s own culture.
as the way of life, and the way of life is
what we call as >This perspective led to the view that no
one culture is superior than another
culture.
culture when compared to systems of
✔This implies that CULTURE has a lot to morality, law, politics, etc.
do with ETHICS. The former is very much
Categories
closely related to the latter.
1. Absolute Cultural Relativism
✔This implies that everything that
>We can recall that Ethics is the study of
happens within a culture must and
the morality of human actions: it
should not be questioned by outsiders.
investigates on what is right and wrong.
2. Critical Cultural Relativism
✔But what really determines “right and
wrong”? ✔These questions about cultural
practices in terms of who is accepting
>If we admit that ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are
them and why.
social values that arise from ‘a particular
way of life’ (culture), then the values of ✔Critical cultural relativism also
right and wrong recognizes power relationships.
>Since ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are cultural relative to individuals.
values and cultural values vary in its
o Whatever you believe is right for you
meaning and employment from one
personally is completely up to you to
culture to another, then, the values of
determine.
‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are relative to the
culture to which it is employed. o This allows you to be sovereign over the
principles that dictate how you live your
>This is called ethical relativism.
life.
2. Conventional Ethical Relativism
WHAT IS ETHICAL RELATIVISM?
✔This supports the view that the truth of
>It is that which views truth as variable moral principles is relative to cultures (or
and not absolute. society).
>What constitutes right and wrong is o Unlike the subjective view, what is right
determined solely by the individual or by for you as an individual is dependent
society. upon what your particular culture
believes is right for you.
>Since truth is not objective, there can be
no objective standard which applies to all o This view supports the concept that
cultures. whatever culture says is right for you
really is right for you.
>No one can say if someone else is right
or wrong; it is a matter of personal >The culture or society becomes the
opinion, and no society can pass highest authority about what is right for
judgment on another society. each individual within that society.
✔ In other words, “right” and “wrong” are >It places the individuals will subordinate
culture-specific; what is considered to the will of the cultural majority
moral in one society may be considered
immoral in another.
✔Since no universal standard of morality
exists, no one has the right to judge
another society’s customs.
Categories
1. Subjective Ethical Relativism
✔This supports the view that the truth of
moral principles is
