Can you defend Benedict against this consequence?
If ethical relativism depends on one’s norms in one’s own culture or society then it would be difficult to agree with the idea that abortion should be solved with capital punishment. Ruth Benedict claims that “…normality is culturally defined” and “..carries its preferences further and further”. The majority, voting for their “norm”, should not have a say if the situation is complicated. Whether or not the majority voted towards capital punishment, there are certain situation that change the morality of the decision. Although it is bad to end a life; topics like rape, financial issues, simple physical or mental issues may change the idea of abortion. In these cases, abortion may be seen as beneficial to the woman or even a way to keep her safe. If a woman is raped, she has no desire to be a victim; having the child of her attacker would most likely hurt the child if the mother does not want him or her. If the woman has financial issues, being able to take care of an infant would be very difficult and would most likely lead to her having to give up her child. Although adoption is not a bad “solution”, it is a very hard choice if a woman does not want to give her child away. Another main concern would be the health of the baby or the mother; sadly in some cases, it would hurt both. Sadly, sometimes, there are mothers in the world that have to abort due to the fact that their health is awful and the baby is putting the mother’s life at risk. What good would it do to continue the pregnancy if both will end up dying? Now going back to what Benedict reminds us, “we recognized that morality differs in every society and is a convenient term for socially approved habits” The majority might have voted because their society made them believe that it was the right decision. It is the norm after all. If we truly think about it, religion is one of the most influential things in our lives, at least to those who have a religion. In my church, we were told that abortion is a sin and that anyone who commits that crime will go to hell. Now imagine if all the other religions had a similar belief. How do you think the people will react? It’s simple; most people conform to the norm because being anything other than normal is frightening . No one wants to be the other. There are many other reasons why people believe abortion is wrong. Some believe that the moment of conception is the moment life begins. Who are we to tell others what is right and wrong? To answer the question if I can defend Benedict, the answer is no. I don’t believe that the majority should have a say in others’ lives. Society in the United States is mainly made up of different cultures, races, historical backgrounds; it is a diverse country full of different beliefs and people. We all come from different upbringings and have our own lives. The majority should not have a say in serious situations that they do not understand. I know that this is very hypocritical of me to say, after all I will be voting and I hope that the majority votes similar to me. Even after that being said, I still don’t believe that people who are having a say in this, may potentially risk other people’s lives by controlling what one can and can’t do.
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