Lesson 2: THE MORAL AGENT: CULTURE IN MORAL A human individual has finite freedom which means that one

nite freedom which means that one has the

capacity to give herself a particular direction in life according to her
BEHAVIOR own ideal self. Given this finite freedom to humans, the meaning of
one’s existence is in the interaction between fact that one’s being is a
Moral agency is an individual's ability to make moral judgments product of many forces outside her choosing and her ideal future for
based on some notion of right and wrong and to be held accountable herself. This is therefore an existential challenge of forming one’s self.
for these actions. When a person as an observer assesses the actions
or behavior of someone, she is making a moral judgment. The human individual never exists in a vacuum as if she were a pure
rational entity without any embodiment and historicity. The moral
He is also capable of identifying a moral issue and making moral agent is not calculating, unfeeling machine that produces completely
decision. A moral issue is a situation that calls for moral valuation. objective and absolutely correct solutions to even the most complex
moral problems.
A moral agent is "a being who is capable of acting with reference to
right and wrong. A moral agent makes a moral decision. That is when Therefore, the human individual always exists in the tension between
he is placed in a situation and confronted by the choice of what action being conditioned by external factors and being a free agent.
to perform. Also, a moral agent can be in a situation where he has to
decide between two or more opposing or conflicting options or also We have to recognize that there are instances when we make value
called a moral dilemma. judgments that are not considered to be part of ethics. The following
are our three kinds of valuation:
A moral agent is a person who has the ability to discern right from
wrong and to be held accountable for his or her actions. Moral agents 1. Aesthetics
have a moral responsibility not to cause unjustified harm.
- Derived from the Greek word aesthesis (“sense” or “feeling”)
Traditionally, moral agency is assigned only to those who can be held
responsible for their actions. Children, and adults with certain mental - Refers to the judgments of personal approval or disapproval that we
disabilities, may have little or no capacity to be moral agents. Adults make about what we see, hear, smell, or taste.
with full mental capacity relinquish their moral agency only in extreme
situations, like being held hostage. By expecting people to act as moral - This valuation falls under the domain of aesthetics. We often use the
agents, we hold people accountable for the harm they cause others. word “taste” to refer to the personal aesthetic preferences that we
have on these matters, such as his taste in music, or in clothes”.
The Moral Agent and Contexts
2. Rules of etiquette
The one who is tasked to think about what is “right” and why it is so,
and to choose to do so is the human individual. This is the individual - Concerned with our sense of approval or disapproval concerning
who must engage herself in ethical thought and decision making. “Who certain actions.
one is” is fundamental and another major topic in the act of
philosophizing to know thyself. - For example, it is right for you to knock before entering a room,
because it signifies politeness. Saying please.
Filipino philosopher Ramon Castillo Reyes (1935-2014) explained that
“Who one is” is a cross-point. This means that one’s identity, who one - But these are not considered not quite grave enough to consider in
is, who I am, is a product of many forces and events that happened the discussion of ethics.
outside of one’s choosing.
3. Techniques
Four cross- points:
- Used to refer to a proper way (or right way) of doing things, but a
1. Physical technical valuation (or right and wrong technique of doing things) may
not necessarily be an ethical one.
2. Interpersonal
These kinds of valuation are not considered to be part of ethics. What
3. Societal valuations therefore are involved in ethics?

4. Historical They involve valuations that we make in a sphere of human actions,

characterized by certain gravity and concern the human well- being or
Physical cross-point(1) is a function of physical events in the past human life itself.
and materials in the present that one did not have choice in. You
inherited the genetic material of both your biological parents. Your Generally speaking, ethics is about matters such as the good things
body has been shaped and continues to be conditioned. All of these are that we should pursue and the bad things that we should avoid. The
given; they have happened or are still happening whether you want it thing here is, it’s not that it tells you what is right and wrong; but it will
or want. You did not choose to be a human being, nor to have this help and guide you in determining it for yourself. How? By these
particular set of biological parents, nor to be born in and/or grown up in conceptual and analytic tools that will guide you in your ethical
such a physical environment. thinking, this will contribute to your intellectual competencies and
analysis of human existence. We will determine the grounds for the
An individual is also the product of an interpersonal cross- Point(2) values which has significance to human life.
of many events and factors outside of one’s choosing. One did not
choose her own parents, and yet her personality, character traits, and In our moral valuation, sources of authority that imposed our standards
her overall way of doing things and thinking about things have all been of valuation and these commands our obedience. It includes the law,
shaped by the character of her parents and how they brought her up. religion, and culture.
All of these are also affected by the people surrounding her: siblings,
relatives, classmates, playmates, and eventually workmates. One’s What is culture?
character or personality has been shaped by one’s relationships that
Culture is all around us. It appears to be an
affect how one thinks and feels.
actual part of our social life as well as our
“One who is” is shaped by one’s society, a societal cross-point(3). personality.
Society refers to all the elements of the human groups – as opposed to
Culture is a quality that some people have
the natural environment – that one is a member of it. Reyes argues
more than others: because how cultured we
that “who one is” is molded in a large part by the kind of society and
are depends on some factors such as
culture—which, for the most part, one did not choose—that one
status, class, education, taste in music or
belongs to. Filipinos have their own way of doing things (pagmamano),
film, and speech habits.
their own system of beliefs and values (close- family ties), and even
their notions of right and wrong (communal versus an individualistic
- Culture is so complex and it’s not easy to define. In one sense, culture
notion of rights- bayanihan). This third cross point interacts with the is used to denote those which are related to arts and humanities.
physical and interpersonal factors that the individual and her people
- It denotes the practices, beliefs, and perceptions of a given society.
are immersed into or engaged in.
- It is the sum total of the learned behavior of a group of people that
One’s people’s history shapes “who one is” right now. History are the
are traditions and are transmitted from generation to generation.
events that one’s people has undergone. For example, the Philippines
had a long history of colonization that affected how Philippine society
- It is the cultivated behavior of an individual which is socially
has been formed and how Philippine culture has developed. This in
transmitted through social learning.
turn, shapes the individual who is a member of the Philippine society.
We are colonized by the Spaniards and they introduced Christianity to Cultural knowledge includes all the things individuals learn while
the Philippines. Christianity, for good or bad, has formed Philippine growing up among particular group: attitudes, standards of morality,
society and culture, and most probably the individual Filipino, whether rules of etiquette, perceptions of reality, language, notions about the
she may be Christian herself or not. The historical cross- point proper way to live, beliefs about how females and males should
(4)also interacts with the three points. Each cross point thus crosses interact, ideas about how the world works and so forth.
over into the others as well.
HOW DOES CULTURE SHAPE MORAL BEHAVIOR?

Culture is learned as children grow up in society and discover how their

Being a product of all these cross-points is just one side of “who one parents and others around them interpret the world. Culture is shared.
is”. “Who one is” is also a project for one’s self. Many aspects of morality are taught. Observing or watching them,
people develop a set of idea what is right and wrong, what is
 culture, religion and tradition. Outside cultures such as the United
acceptable or not. Culture undeniably does play a significant pseudo
States look down upon FGC, but are unable to stop this practice from
role within shaping moral behaviour and extends even further to social happening because it is protected by its culture.
norms. Arguably, rather than defining our moral behavior per se, it
influences and changes our definitions of what ought to be deemed Key points of Cultural Relativism
morally acceptable by consistent exposure to it.
 Recognizes that different cultures have their own legitimate ways of
The main determining question is whether moral behavior/actions are thinking and behaving.
independent in comparison with the case in question. Saying yes would
be implicitly stating we have inherent morality/moral norms that are in  Avoids making value judgments about other cultures based on one's
not necessarily attributable to exposure to external factors - e.g. own cultural norms.
culture.
 Encourages cross-cultural understanding and tolerance.
Culture, itself, is an individualistic, man-made concept of collective
identity that is open to complete subjectivity. The fact so many  Challenges the idea of cultural superiority and promotes cultural
‘cultures’ exist is evidence of this - solely due to the differentiation of humility..
societal norms from place to place.

The subjectivity argument for culture can be stretched further and

applied to morality. Where culture does form the basis of some of our
morality is in the fact that, whilst we might share certain moral views,
what is deemed morally acceptable/repugnant differs from person to ARGUMENTS OF CULTURAL RELATIVISM:
person.
1. The argument of cultural relativism is premised on the reality of
By way of example, let us discuss the issue of arranged/forced difference.
marriage.
Because different cultures have different moral codes, we cannot say
From a modern cultural standpoint, it would be generally widely agreed that any moral code is the right one. But is it a case of the presence of
that forced marriage is a morally reprehensible concept and not disagreement means there are no right or wrong answers?
acceptable under any circumstances. Disagreement may mean that the question of who is right or wrong is
not immediately evident, but it does not necessarily mean that there is
By way of contrast, the regularity of the same concept within some no one correct resolution.
societies, would be seen much more favourably due to the level of
habitual exposure individuals within that society have to it. 2. Under cultural relativism, we realize that we are in no position to
render any kind of judgment on the practices of another culture.
Essentially, the cultural bias by which we form our moral opinions is
shaped by social acceptance within our own individual societies. While But what if the practice seems to call for comments? What if a
there are some obvious exceptions, this rationale can be applied to particular African tribe thought it is advantageous and therefore right
most moral concepts, where there is a distinct difference between the for them to wipe out a neighbouring people through a terrified practice
ways in which they are viewed in one culture vs. another. of genocide? Some Middle east countries was highly repressive
(inhibits the freedom) to women reaching to the point of violence?
“Individuals are a product of their culture” and “learning a culture is an What about the traditional head hunting that is still maintained by
essential part of human development” (De Guzman & Pena, 2016) certain societies in Cordilleras? Are we in no position to judge any of
these as wrong? This is one of the implications of cultural relativism.
CULTURAL RELATIVISM IN ETHICS
3. Under cultural relativism, we are in no position to render judgment
Our exposure to different societies and their cultures makes us aware on the practices of even our own culture.
that there are ways of thinking and valuing that are different from our
own, that there is in fact a wide diversity of how different people If our culture was the basis for determining right and wrong, we would
believe it is proper to act. be unable to say that something within our culture is problematic,

because we take our culture to be the standard for making judgments.

We can see here the reality of diversity. We cannot say that our culture
One must dig deeper into her own culture in order to discover how her
is what is ethically acceptable than the other culture. In our moral
own people have most meaningfully explored universal human
valuation, we have different ways of valuation, which means there is
questions or problems within the particularity of her own people’s
no single universal standard for such valuations. What is ethically
native ground.
acceptable or not is relative to, or that is to say, dependent on one’s
culture. This position is referred to as cultural relativism. Cultural
We are urged to think more carefully about how one’s understanding of
Relativism is viewed as the idea that we should seek to understand
her belonging to a certain culture could be more fruitful and
another person’s beliefs and behaviors from the perspective of their
meaningful fir her ethical discernment.
culture rather than our own.
ETHNOCENTRISM
CULTURAL RELATIVISM: THE DIFFERENCES IN MORAL
JUDGMENT AND The tendency to view one’s own culture as the most important and
correct and as a measuring stick by which to evaluate all other cultures
BEHAVIOR, ACROSS AND WITHIN SOCIETIES
that are largely seen as inferior and morally suspect. Judging another
culture based upon the values and standards set in one’s own culture.
Highlights:
Key points of Ethnocentrism:
 Cultures vary substantially in both moral judgments and moral
behaviors.
 Involves evaluating other cultures based on one's own cultural
standards.
 Cultural variations in morality within societies can vary as much as
cultural variations in morality between societies.
 Assumes that one's own culture is the "norm" by which all others
should be measured.
 Cultural factors contributing to this variation include religion, human
ecology (weather, crop conditions, population density, pathogen
 Can lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and a lack of appreciation
prevalence, residential mobility), and regulatory social institutions such
for cultural diversity.
as kinship structures and economic markets.
 May reinforce stereotypes and discrimination against other cultures.
Cultural relativism is the ability to understand a culture on its own
terms and not to make judgments using the standards of one’s own XENOCENTRISM
culture. The goal of this is promote understanding of cultural practices
that are not typically part of one’s own culture. Using the perspective Individuals or a group of people exhibit a strong preference for or belief
of cultural relativism leads to the view that no one culture is superior in the superiority of foreign or foreign-made products, ideas, cultures,
than another culture when compared to systems of morality, law, or practices over their own.
politics, etc. It is a concept that cultural norms and values derive their
meaning within a specific social context. This is also based on the idea Key points of Xenocentrism:
that there is no absolute standard of good or evil, therefore every
decision and judgment of what is right and wrong is individually  It can involve admiration and emulation of foreign cultures and
decided in each society. practices.

The concept of cultural relativism also means that any opinion on  It may lead to a dilution of one's cultural identity as individuals or
ethics is subject to the perspective of each person within their groups embrace
particular culture. Overall, there is no right or wrong ethical system. In
a holistic understanding of the term cultural relativism, it tries to foreign influences and adopt elements from other cultures.
promote the understanding of cultural practices that are unfamiliar to
MORAL RELATIVISM
other cultures such as eating insects, genocides or genital cutting.
Cultural relativism is the most famous form of moral relativism. In
The practice of genital cutting especially in Africa, is a procedure which
moral relativism, ethical judgments have their origins either in
refers to the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or
individual or cultural standards. Our ethical judgments vary based on
any other trauma to the female reproductive/genital organs. By
our origins and we have therefore varying moral principles which
allowing this procedure to happen, females are considered women and
guides a person as their basis of moral decisions and ethical judgment.
then are able to be married. FGC is practiced mainly because of
It fundamentally believes that no act is good or bad objectively 2. Hiya – the feeling of lowliness, shame or embarrassment and
because moral standards change over time even in the same culture. shyness

Moral relativists view all moral norms as equally true, and morals as 3. Amor propio – commonly translated as “self-respect” or “self-
mere preferences. We cannot be objective. We cannot say that this is esteem”
right, this is wrong. There are variations.
4. Utang na loob – this involves the concept of “reciprocity” or
ETHICAL RELATIVISM returning the received favor.

Ethical relativism is the theory that holds that morality is relative to the 5. Filipino hospitality - refers to the innate ability and trait of
norms of one's culture. That is, whether an action is right or wrong Filipinos to be courteous and entertaining to their guests.
depends on the moral norms of the society in which it is practiced. The
same action may be morally right in one society but be morally wrong 6. Respect for elders – these include the use of “po” and “opo” when
in another. Cultures differ widely in their moral practices. As talking to elders and “pagmamano”
anthropologist Ruth Benedict illustrates in patterns of culture, diversity
is evident even on those matters of morality where we would expect to THE UNIVERSAL VALUES
agree.
By universal values we mean those values generally shared by
We might suppose that in the matter of taking life all peoples would cultures. There are some moral rules that all societies will have in
agree on condemnation. On the contrary, in the matter of homicide, it common, because those rules are necessary for society to exist.
may be held that one kills by custom his two children, or that a
1. Truth telling - without it, there would be no reason to pay attention
husband has a right of life and death over his wife or that it is the duty
to what anyone
of the child to kill his parents before they are old. It may be the case
that those are killed who steal fowl, or who cut their upper teeth first,
communicates with anyone.
or who are born on Wednesday.
2. Respecting life - necessitates the prohibition on murder.
Among some people, a person suffers torment at having caused an
accidental death, among others, it is a matter of no consequence.
Suicide may also be a light matter, the recourse of anyone who has
suffered some slight rebuff. It may be the highest and noblest act a These universal values are necessary to maintain a healthy society.
wise man can perform (like how samurais commit Harakiri or ritual
disembowelment to save face).

Other anthropologists point to a range of practices considered morally

acceptable in some societies but condemned in others, including
infanticide (killing babies), genocide (killing ethnic groups), polygamy
(having more than one spouses), racism, sexism, and torture. Such
differences may lead us to question whether there are any universal
moral principles or whether morality is merely a matter of "cultural
taste." Differences in moral practices across cultures raise an
important issue in ethics – the concept of "ethical relativism."

In Ethical relativism, morality is relative to the norms of one's culture.

That is, whether an action is right or wrong depends on the moral
norms of the society in which it is practiced. The same action may be
morally right in one society but be morally wrong in another. For the
ethical relativist, there are no universal moral standards – standards
that can be universally applied to all peoples at all times. The only
moral standards against which a society's practices can be judged are
its own.

Other philosophers criticize ethical relativism because of its

implications for individual moral beliefs. These philosophers assert that
if the rightness or wrongness of an action depends on a society's
norms, then it follows that one must obey the norms of one's society
and to diverge from those norms is to act immorally. This means that
if I am a member of a society that believes that racial or sexist
practices are morally permissible, then I must accept those
practices as morally right. But such a view promotes social
conformity and leaves no room for moral reform or improvement in a
society. Furthermore, members of the same society may hold different
views on practices.

In the United States, for example, a variety of moral opinions exists on

matters ranging from animal experimentation to abortion. What
constitutes right action when social consensus is lacking?

Perhaps the strongest argument against ethical relativism comes from

those who assert that universal moral standards can exist even if some
moral practices and beliefs vary among cultures. In other words, we
can acknowledge cultural differences in moral practices and beliefs and
still hold that some of these practices and beliefs are morally wrong.
The practice of slavery in pre-Civil war U.S. society or the practice of
apartheid in South Africa is wrong despite the beliefs of those societies.
The treatment of the Jews in Nazi society is morally reprehensible
regardless of the moral beliefs of Nazi society.

For these philosophers, ethics is an inquiry into right and wrong

through a critical examination of the reasons underlying
practices and beliefs. As a theory for justifying moral practices and
beliefs, ethical relativism fails to recognize that some societies have
better reasons for holding their views than others.

But even if the theory of ethical relativism is rejected, it must be

acknowledged that the concept raises important issues. Ethical
relativism reminds us that different societies have different
moral beliefs and that our beliefs are deeply influenced by
culture. It also encourages us to explore the reasons underlying
beliefs that differ from our own, while challenging us to examine our
reasons for the beliefs and values we hold.

THE FILIPINO WAY - FILIPINO MORAL CHARACTER: STRENGTHS

AND WEAKNESSES

Filipino cultural morality centers on having a smooth interpersonal

relationship. To achieve this, we have six basic Filipino values:

1. Pakikisama - having and maintaining “good public relations”