Question

He cultural differences argument consists of the following: premise 1: if there were universal ethical truths, cultures wouldn't have different moral values. premise 2: different cultures have different moral values. conclusion: there are no universal ethical truths. which of the following observations poses a challenge to the cultural differences argument?

a.) the premises do not support the conclusion, so the argument is invalid.
b.) premise 2 is false because moral truths are not always easily discovered.
c.) the premises are true and the argument is valid, but the conclusion is still false.
d.) premise 1 is false because disagreement does not mean there is no objective truth.

Answer 1

The observation that challenges the cultural differences argument is the rejection of the premise that diverse moral values rule out the existence of universal ethical truths. Different societies share certain fundamental moral understandings, and the existence of common principles suggests the possibility of underlying universal ethical truths.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question deals with the challenge to the cultural differences argument which posits that the existence of different moral values across cultures negates universal ethical truths. The observation that poses a challenge to this argument is: "d.) premise 1 is false because disagreement does not mean there is no objective truth." This suggests that the presence of diverse moral perspectives does not necessarily rule out the existence of objective ethical truths that transcend cultural boundaries.

The Theory of Normative Ethical Relativism argues that what is morally right or wrong is determined by what a particular culture deems to be correct. However, history demonstrates that minorities within cultures do question and sometimes overturn the moral beliefs of the majority, indicating that moral standards are not always confined to what is currently accepted by the predominant culture. Furthermore, the moral realists' perspective offers the notion of objective moral truths that could be universally applicable, which conflicts with the premise of ethical relativism. Examples of nearly universal moral principles, such as the wrongness of unjustified killing, suggest that there may be basic ethical truths shared across different societies.

It is important to note that the existence of diverse moral practices, as observed in descriptive ethical relativism, does not preclude the possibility of underlying universal moral principles. Moreover, objections to the fact-value distinction highlight that the separation of moral values from empirical facts is not universally accepted, and some argue for a more intertwined understanding of facts and values.