Cultural Relativism, Universalism, Evolution, and Anthropocentrism
Cultural Relativism vs. Universalism
Cultural relativism states that all cultures are equally valid. A primary critique of this view is that some cultural practices violate basic human dignity, such as ablation. If all cultures are equally valuable, it becomes difficult to justify improvements or interventions. From a methodological standpoint, it poses challenges to objectively studying other cultures.
Universalism, while respecting cultural differences, asserts that practices violating human dignity should be eliminated. This perspective often faces accusations of cultural imposition, particularly from Western cultures (the “McWorld” phenomenon).
Early Evolutionary Thought: Lamarck
Lamarck (17th Century) provided the first coherent theory of evolution. He proposed that:
- All life forms originate from more primitive forms.
- Organisms face environmental challenges, and survival depends on their ability to overcome these obstacles.
- Organisms adapt to changing conditions. He famously stated, “The function creates the organ.”
- Changes accumulated over generations, through individual efforts, produce significant evolutionary shifts. This is known as the inheritance of acquired characteristics.
Anthropocentrism
Anthropocentrism is the interpretation of nature from a human-centric perspective. We project our own motivations onto nature, assuming that every action in nature has a purpose, and life itself has a goal. This leads to the idea that nature must have been designed by an intelligent author with reason and purpose. This is a core tenet of the theory of intelligent design, which posits that nature, including humans, could not have arisen randomly but must have been created intentionally.
Darwinism: The Theory of Evolution
Darwin’s theory of evolution states that all living beings are related, descending from the first life form. For example, the history of vertebrates shows a differentiation from fish-like forms to reptiles and amphibians.
Key Principles of Darwinian Evolution:
- Species Evolution: Species appear, become extinct, and change constantly, although these changes may not be immediately apparent.
- Dynamic Nature: Nature is dynamic, and the environments in which species develop also change.
- Spontaneous Variations: Unlike Lamarck, who believed acquired characters were the primary cause of evolution, Darwin attributed evolutionary change to spontaneous variations in the inherited traits.
- Gradualism: The process of change is gradual, without sudden jumps between species. Variations within a species are transmitted to offspring.
- Natural Selection: Over time, accumulated changes across generations can lead to significant differences from the initial state. This means that natural selection fosters the development of new, specialized traits.
Reasons for Cultural Diversity
- Ecological Reasons: Each social group develops cultural habits adapted to its environmental conditions.
- Historical Reasons: Groups evolve from their past, incorporating innovations and changes, both small and large.
- Geographical Reasons: Cultural transformation occurs due to factors such as isolation. The evolution of a group is influenced by its geographic isolation.
The attribution of cultural variation to basic genetic uniformity is refuted by the human genome. Every culture exhibits resistance to change. This resistance is evident both internally and in response to external influences.