Relativism In Renato Rosaldo's Article, Of Headhunters And Soldiers

In Renato Rosaldo’s article, Of Headhunters and Soldiers, there are several key themes, but this essay will just discuss the most common: Relativism and the terms related to this theory. By examining the definition of relativism, the controversy about it, and how it applies to one’s own life, one can further their knowledge on this topic. First, Relativism is defined, by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, as “the belief that different things are true, right, etc., for different people or at different times”. Some sociologists argue that there are really two commonly discussed types of Relativism- cultural and ethical. Cultural being, willing to contemplate other culture’s beliefs and accepting that one culture is not inherently better than another; whereas, Ethical Relativism is simply, “what is right for me, might not be right for you”. To put simply, cultural lumps a society of people together, and ethical is a more personal theology. Next, the term Relativism is usually used with a negative connotation in the world of science. One of the most common arguments against Relativism is that if one begins to dig deeper into another culture, and study their way of life, that he will begin to …show more content…
Relativism is easily split into two different types: Cultural, being open to the ideals of other cultures and Ethical, believing that “what is right for me, may not be what is right for you”. Next, Relativism does not equate to completely changing one’s life to fit into another culture’s, it is simply being open to the ideals of others. As Rosaldo said, “I realize that some things we do and take for granted can inspire other people's abhorrence.” Thus, one should open his eyes and come to his own conclusion about not judging a culture by its