Title
Much Ado About Very Little: Derek Brereton on the Purported Death of Cultural Relativism
Publication Title
Journal of Critical Realism
Publication Date
2011
Document Type
Article
DOI
10.1558/jcr.v10i4.511
Keywords
cultural relativism, ethnology, critical realism, reality, ontology, perception, definitions, ghosts, evolution (biology), anthropology, Brereton, Derek
Disciplines
Anthropology
Abstract
The article offers a defense of the integration of cultural relativism into the field of cultural anthropology in response to critiques made by sociologist Derek Brereton. The author argues that his views on definitions and on the ontology of ghosts are misrepresented by Brereton's critique. He asserts that most cultural relativists do not deny the existence of an external world but argues that it is difficult to define that world as a result of differences in sense perception. Other topics include the role of biological evolution in cultural relativism, and compatibilities between cultural relativism and critical realism.
Recommended Citation
Feinberg, Richard (2011). Much Ado About Very Little: Derek Brereton on the Purported Death of Cultural Relativism. Journal of Critical Realism 10(4), 511-519. doi: 10.1558/jcr.v10i4.511 Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.kent.edu/anthpubs/9