A moral dilemma is a type of dilemma that exists when available choices do not allow for moral outcomes. In such cases, a choice is required to be made from a list of alternatives. All of the available alternatives violate some moral obligation (Crowder & Turvey, 2013). This paper will outline a scenario where someone I know was confronted with a moral dilemma relating to cultural diversity and multiculturalism. The paper will then outline what subjective moral relativist and cultural relativist would say is the right approach to the dilemma. Lastly, the paper will outline the decision made by the person confronting the dilemma as well as state if there was an objective moral truth in the scenario.
A friend of mine was faced with a moral dilemma relating to cultural diversity and multiculturalism. The friend, who is a devout Catholic, is married and has several children. The friend later discovers that his spouse is abusing one of the children. According to the Catholic Church, marriage is a sacrament and is indissoluble. As such, it is immoral to divorce a spouse. In other words, according to their culture, Catholics have a moral obligation to repair a failing marriage, especially if children are involved. However, according to the Catholic Church, a moral obligation also exists to protect one’s children. As such, my friend is faced with a moral dilemma. He has two choices –divorcing his spouse and remaining with an abusing spouse. Both choices are morally unacceptable at best.
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In this scenario, a subjective moral relativist would say that divorcing the spouse is the right approach. In subjective relativism, moral choices are relative not to cultures but to individuals (Kanarek, 2013). Subjective moral relativists use the constitution, laws or theories for justification (Rachels & Rachels, 2018). With this mind, subjective moral relativists will reason that the moral obligation to protect one’s child outweighs the moral obligation to repair a failing marriage.
On the other hand, a cultural relativist would say that repairing a failing marriage is the right approach. According to the Catholic Church, marriage is a sacrament and is indissoluble. Although a moral obligation exists to protect one’s child, this moral obligation does not outweigh the moral obligation to repair a failing marriage. As such, a cultural relativist would say that repairing a failing marriage is the right approach in this scenario.
The person confronting the dilemma decided to remain with an abusive spouse. My friend based his decision on the Catholic culture. According to their culture, marriage is a sacrament and is indissoluble. This means that Catholics are not supposed to divorce their spouses but fixed their marriages. Thus, my friend decided to remain with an abusive spouse.
In this scenario, there was no objective moral truth. This is because both choices were morally unacceptable at best. This moral dilemma is not unique to individuals with strong religious beliefs. In this situation, individuals with a strong belief in religious beliefs would choose to repair their marriage rather than protecting their children. However, subjective moral relativists will choose to protect their children rather than repairing their marriage.
This paper discussed a moral dilemma relating to cultural diversity and multiculturalism. The dilemma involved a devout Catholic that was faced with the dilemma of choosing between remaining with an abusive spouse or protecting his child. Subjective moral relativists and cultural relativists are highly likely to approach this scenario differently. In this scenario, subjective moral relativists are highly likely to protect the child while cultural relativists are highly likely to remain with the abusive spouse. Both choices are morally unacceptable.
References
Crowder, S., & Turvey, B. E. (2013). Ethics in the Criminal Justice Professions. Ethical Justice: Applied Issues for Criminal Justice Students and Professionals , 1.
Kanarek, J. (2013). Critiquing cultural relativism. The Intellectual Standard , 2 (2), 1.
Rachels J., & Rachels, S. (2018). The elements of moral philosophy. McGraw-Hill Education.
