Some cultures consider marital rape a man's right(including in the Western world not too long ago). The vikings thought nothing of raping and pillaging. Some people think that killing any animals is morally wrong. Are there any universals to morality or is it pretty much down to opinion?
2007-01-25 16:24:17 · 6 answers · asked by parthenophilast 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Other - Society & Culture
Not sure how to answer your question, but if you get the chance, read Richard Wright's "The Moral Animal". It has some interesting observations about moral behavior in non-human species. For instance, in his book, he points out (and supports with evidence) that gibbons are much more monogamous than humans, and so on.
Robert Axelrod put it best when he said that as a whole, we are as moral as we have to be to get what we want from others.
Altruism has a naturally occurring frequency of about 5% of all behavior in the wild (among "higher animals"), but if it is not rewarded, it doesn't spread. Most of the time, we behave more kindly toward our kin than we do toward strangers, but not always.
Good luck getting an answer!
2007-01-25 16:33:06 · answer #1 · answered by Don M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Things are either right or wrong. Just because some people can deaden their conscience or rationalize their behavior doesn't mean that the behavior has suddenly become moral. Rape is rape. If the Vikings didn't care about the harm they did to others it wasn't because rape and murder had lost their despicable nature.
Sex outside of marriage is considered immoral because great harm can result from it--stds, illegitimate pregnancies, abortion, poverty, divorce, child abandonment and abuse, are just a few of the results.
People can justify their behavior because it's what they want to do and they don't care about the consequences. But there is a reason why God and society have decided that these behaviors should be classified as immoral--and it's usually because people, and society, would be better off if they didn't do them.
2007-01-26 00:45:54 · answer #2 · answered by Ellen J 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is universal morality, but in this day and age, people are discarding it in favor of their own opinion. Morality is only relative according to time, place, and circumstance. For instance, killing an animal is wrong, but killing a tiger who attacks people is just. Stealing is also wrong, but if you find a gun in your teen-ager's room, you should take it. Universal morality is handed down from God. The further from God a society is, the more corrupt the morality.
2007-01-26 00:34:21 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
People can say that some things are according to (someone's interpretation of) God's law, but in reality laws, social mores, etc., are basically the mere concensus of what is convenient overall for a society.
2007-01-26 00:33:43 · answer #4 · answered by The Invisible Man 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Killing another person for no reason seems to be pretty much universal. With very few exceptions, incest and child molestation are taboo. That's about it, though. The rest can be rationalized away by your typical human.
2007-01-26 00:30:03 · answer #5 · answered by Omni D 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
0% relativity
Morality comes from spiritual law, such as the 10 Commandments which are not localized or set in a specific time.
That's my take on it anyway.
2007-01-26 00:34:59 · answer #6 · answered by Lavender 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋