Rationalism vs Relativism - What's the difference?
rationalism | relativism |
(philosophy) The theory that the basis of knowledge is reason, rather than experience or divine revelation.
(uncountable, philosophy) The theory, especially in ethics or aesthetics, that conceptions of truth and moral values are not absolute but are relative to the persons or groups holding them.
(countable, philosophy) A specific such theory, advocated by a particular philosopher or school of thought.
* 2008 , Paul Boghossian, “Replies to Wright, MacFarlane and Sosa,” Philosophical Studies , vol. 141, no. 3, p. 413:
As nouns the difference between rationalism and relativism
is that rationalism is the theory that the basis of knowledge is reason, rather than experience or divine revelation while relativism is the theory, especially in ethics or aesthetics, that conceptions of truth and moral values are not absolute but are relative to the persons or groups holding them.rationalism
English
(wikipedia rationalism)Noun
Synonyms
* intellectualismAntonyms
* irrationalism * traditionalismDerived terms
* critical rationalismSee also
* empiricismrelativism
English
(wikipedia relativism)Noun
- Following Gilbert Harman’s lead, my own formulation of relativism' about the normative domain was based on the classic examples of thoroughgoing ' relativisms drawn from physics.
