Moral relativism is the belief that no independent moral truth exists but that morality is defined, rather, by individual and cultural beliefs and conventions. Moral values of this type, whose validity would be resultant of their creation by and subsequent standardization in a particular society, would be analogous in origin and nature to the customs of etiquette arrived at by the same means. Societies assembled their guidelines of etiquette over time and, in doing so, assigned to them any weight they now have. If moral relativism is accepted, moral codes must be created and made valid among their followers in the same way. The following argument exposes the fatal deficiency of this theory and, in doing so, proves that objective moral truth must exist if morality is to have any value.
The purpose of morality is to direct actions toward happiness. If morality were relative, it could only be determined by human reason and human convention. If morality were determined by human reason and human convention, it would either be determined arbitrarily or as an attempt by individuals and societies to direct their actions toward happiness. If morality were determined arbitrarily, it would bear no weight in directing our...
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