ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the notion of ethical relativity in comparison with the arguments for moral relativism raised by neo-sentimentalist Jesse Prinz in his The Emotional Construction of Morals. It examines the main tenets of Prinz's account of emotions and how it relates to morality. The chapter also considers the kinds of moral relativism suggested by Edward Westermarck's and Prinz's theories and how they relate to their respective accounts of emotions, in search for differences and similarities that could help people determine whether an account of morality that gives central place to emotions necessarily leads to relativism. Inspired by John W. Cook's discussion of the role of moral relativism in anthropology and philosophy, it then addresses the question whether it is possible to present empirical evidence for moral relativism and to what extent Westermarck and Prinz succeed in doing so.
