Moral Relativity

David B. Wong

• Publisher: University of California Press
• Year: 2023
• Print ISBN: 9780520335011
• eBook ISBN: 9780520335028
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Ethics & Moral Philosophy

Moral Relativity: Reconciling Objectivity and Subjectivity provides a compelling framework for understanding moral experience through the lens of relativism. The book contends that there is no single true morality and argues that this perspective best explains the dual nature of moral experience, which combines elements of objectivity—such as truth claims and rational argumentation—with elements of subjectivity, including deep cultural and individual disagreements. By exploring the nature of moral language and its relationship to truth, facts, and human behavior, the book examines how moral statements and values are influenced by diverse cultural, philosophical, and linguistic contexts. This approach critiques absolutist claims of a singular moral truth while offering a nuanced explanation of moral plurality that embraces the complexity of moral discourse.

The book also integrates contemporary developments in the philosophy of language to address long-standing challenges in metaethics. By building on advancements in theories of truth, reference, and translation, it critiques older approaches rooted in verificationism and the analytic-synthetic distinction. Instead, it proposes a new relativist framework that bridges the perceived gap between the objective and subjective dimensions of morality. Drawing on examples from moral philosophy, comparative ethics, and sociocultural analysis, the book demonstrates how relativist theories can provide a coherent reconciliation of moral diversity with the shared human pursuit of ethical understanding. This innovative perspective challenges traditional moral paradigms, offering a robust theoretical foundation for analyzing the interplay between cultural relativism and moral objectivity.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1984.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Contents
• Preface
• 1 Introduction to the Strategy of Argument for Moral Relativity and its Normative Implications
• 2 The Importance of Moral Truth
• 3 Relativist Analyses of Morality as Social Creation
• 4 The Recommended Relativist Analysis of Moral “A ought to do X” Statements
• 5 The Analysis of “A ought to do X” Statements Completed
• 6 The Recommended Relativist Analysis of “X is a good Y” Statements and Consideration of Objections
• 7 Absolutist Analyses of Moral Statements
• 8 The Method for Explaining Diversity and Disagreement in Moral Belief
• 9 Virtue-Centered and
• 10 Moral Relativity Within Virtue-Centered and Rights-Centered Moralities
• 11 Comparing the Truth of Virtue-Centered and Rights-Centered Moralities
• 12 Tolerance and Nonintervention as Implications of Moral Relativity
• 13 Moral Relativity and the Problem of Equal Worth
• Appendix A
• Appendix B
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index