Opening page…
Is morality just a matter of opinion?
Whole societies have approved of slavery. If they were wrong, something besides opinion was doing the judging.
Your answer
You’ll sign in or make an account, then this is kept as your answer.
A little context
Most of what you believe about right and wrong, you were taught. Change your century or your country and some of it would change too. It is tempting to conclude that morality is just local opinion, held firmly. The trouble starts when you try to live with that conclusion.
Nearby questions
- Does nature matter for its own sake?Picture a forest that vanishes without a single person or animal ever noticing or suffering.
- Is it wrong to eat animals?The animal on your plate could feel pain and fear. If you had to kill it yourself, you would find out what you really think.
- Can a deal be unfair if both sides agree to it?A desperate person accepts poverty wages, or sells a kidney, because every other option is worse. They chose it, and it may still be exploitation.
- The coin flipTwo drivers leave the same party equally drunk. A child runs into the road in front of one, who kills the child; the other gets home without hurting anyone. Do they deserve different blame?
- Do the ends justify the means?Sometimes the only way to stop something terrible is to do something terrible yourself. Even then, your hands are not quite clean.
