However, there are extremes in some cultures where individuals eat supposedly unpalatable things. In using portraits of other cultural patterns to reflect self-critically on our own ways, anthropology disrupts common sense and makes us reexamine our taken-for-granted assumptions.[7]. It only converts the anthropologist into a shadowy figure, prone to newsworthy and shallow pronouncements about the cosmic condition of the human race. We should not judge a person for their views on these things, which was the conclusion Paul came to. Why Recognizing Cultural Relativism Matters. The view that whats right/wrong is what your culture approves/disapproves of, and theres no universal or fundamental moral truth beyond that. Similarly, he questioned whether the second principle means that anthropologists "approve the social caste system of India, the racial caste system of the United States, or many other varieties of social discrimination in the world. The idea of Cultural Relativism, as stated above, is appealing and a good scapegoat for the idea of what is moral. New York: John Willey and Sons. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. You can read the entire story in Acts 15 to get the full picture, but here was the verdict. The Bible provides a standard of truth that is consistent and applicable to every culture. Cochrane (1977) reported that the incidence of schizophrenia in the West Indies and the UK is 1 %, but that people of Afro-Caribbean origin are seven times more likely to be diagnosed as schizophrenic when living in the UK. How Can Emotional Intelligence Help You In School? In this way, sociologists and anthropologists can draw more accurate conclusions about outside cultures (Worthy, Lavigne, & Romero, 2020). A Tower of Skulls: Cultural Relativism Meets Human Sacrifice. Weak cultural relativism holds that culture may be an important source of the validity of a moral right or rule. This is most obvious in the case of language. It must embrace and recognize the validity of many different ways of life. Implications In the cultural relativist perspective, no one culture is superior to another when comparing their systems of morality, law, politics, and so on. Moreover, the code of one culture has no special status but is merely one among many. This cross-cultural relationship provides hope that new opportunities will be discovered but at the same time it is threatening. According to history, Chinese people found small feet in women as a symbol of beauty. Cultural relativism implies that it is impossible to disagree with one's culture and be wrong. 3 Why is it important to know cultural relativism? Cartoon showing two people in an empty movie theater. Locally, it is argued that the practice has cultural roots, but such a practice has raised concerns among many international human rights organizations. Cole, Nicki Lisa, Ph.D. "Definition of Cultural Relativism in Sociology." Either we tolerate everything, and keep hands off, or we fight intolerance and conquestpolitical and economic as well as militaryin all their forms."
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