Final answer:
Cultural relativism pertains to understanding cultural beliefs within their context. Strong cultural relativism is absolutist, disallowing internal critique or evolution of moral norms. Weak cultural relativism, however, allows for dynamic cultural understanding, accommodating internal criticisms and societal change.
Step-by-step explanation:
Distinguishing Between Strong and Weak Variants of Cultural Relativism
Cultural relativism is an anthropological concept that posits all cultural beliefs and practices must be understood within their own cultural context. It delineates how cultural norms and values are relative to their specific societal structures, and it's a useful framework for avoiding ethnocentrism—the evaluation of another culture based on the standards of one's own culture. However, the approach taken towards cultural relativism can vary in strength.
Strong Cultural Relativism
The strong variant of cultural relativism is closely connected to Normative Ethical Relativism. This perspective suggests that each culture's morals and ethics are correct simply because they are predominant within that culture. According to this view, there can be no external moral judgments or criticisms of these cultural norms, even by minorities within the culture itself, thus precluding any potential moral reform from minority perspectives.
Weak Cultural Relativism
In contrast, weak cultural relativism, sometimes referred to as cultural relativism 2.0, establishes a perspective that encourages understanding before judgment. It stands for a pause to listen and broaden one's views prior to making narrow conclusions. This form allows for internal critique and change, acknowledging the possibility that cultural norms can evolve and that minority views can influence and reform the predominant moral framework of the society.
In essence, the strong variant of cultural relativism is more absolutist, leaving no room for internal cultural critique or evolution, whereas the weak variant allows for a more dynamic and responsive cultural understanding, which can accommodate change and self-reflection from both internal and external perspectives.