Moral Relativism - Part 1

Ethics and values and morals, oh my! It's time to throw caution to the wind and discuss relativism. Before I do, though, I'll need to invoke my muse and put all my energy into doing this just right. The internet is full of discussions about relativism, and as far as I can make out, it's all either horse poo or extremely boring. I'm going to try my best to keep this and any further posts manageable and well-organized. Here goes...

What difference does it make being a relativist? Does a relativist believe that whatever makes you feel good is "right"? If you see a relativist on the street, how will you know? Think hard about those questions, and don't jump to the easy answers right away, because they're the focal point of the idea of moral relativism.

I make the claim that relativism itself makes very few direct prescriptions, and only provides a few vague implications. It's a mental model for understanding "moral propositions", or statements involving words like "good", "bad", "righteous", "evil", "right", "wrong", "should", and "ought". Yes, it's all just about words, and that can be frustrating, but words make up such a big part of our lives that sometimes they deserve a second look.

Consider the statement "exercise is good". How do you respond to such a statement? You might get up and go for a walk, eat a piece of cheesecake out of defiance, or make an excuse for not exercising. If you have no response whatsoever, and immediately forget the statement, what purpose does it serve? It might still make someone else feel good to say it, or fill a gap in conversation. If, on the other hand, nobody has any response to a statement, in what sense does it still have value? Probably not in much of a practical sense. I take the position that a statement only has practical value if it affects some feeling or behavior, either immediately or down the road.

That in no way berates moral claims themselves or makes people stupid for holding moral beliefs. There is usually a very strong response to moral statements. However, it makes our relationship with such statements a little more explicit. That's not the essence of relativism, but it's a foundation for further argument, and if we can come to agreement on this point then it'll help keep the rest of the discussion sane.