Ethical Relativism David Wong Analysis

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Recommended: Morals shaped by social society

Silvio Altomare
Carol Bigwood
PHIL 2075
20 July 2017
Reflection Paper #2 In David Wong’s article, he seeks to explain how relativism in its various forms can help come to conclusions about the skewed ethical conflicts that individuals face, and looks at the application and reasoning behind each of the major types. Firstly, he explains the type of relativism in which ethical decisions are based on the universal soundness of certain moral codes. This he explains is “meta-ethical relativism, because it is about the relativity of moral truth and justifiability” (Wong 442). He goes on to introduce normative moral relativism, which looks at how one ought to act in various situations, as well as the Universalist position which indicates that there cannot be equally right sides to an argument and there is only one absolute truth to any particular issue (Wong 442). …show more content…

However, this argument is questionable due to the tendency of the opinion of society to often fluctuate and change quite easily with moral critique. Thus, the overall answer to a moral dilemma appears to be variable. This argument would also suggest that morality and good is purely subjective. It is then argued that what is argued to be ethically good, right or wrong is what is required to maintain the functionality and composure of that particular society (Wong 443). However, moral beliefs are not justified because they are requiring for a society to function. Furthermore, individual parts of society with different moral acceptances can also exist with full

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