Work · Sociology & Social Theory
The Origin and Development of the Moral Ideas
Two volumes (1906–08) comparing moral customs worldwide: moral judgements arise from emotions of approval and disapproval that have become disinterested and general, which explains both their similarities and their variation between societies.
Introduction
Westermarck published “The Origin and Development of the Moral Ideas” in two volumes in 1906 and 1908. It is a vast comparative study of moral customs and judgements – on homicide, punishment, property, the treatment of women, slaves and animals, sexual morality, religion – across cultures and periods. Its theoretical chapters argue that moral concepts are based on retributive emotions of approval and disapproval that have become disinterested and general, and that moral ideas therefore vary with circumstances and beliefs. The book was a standard reference in anthropology and ethics in the early twentieth century and the basis of his later “Ethical Relativity” (1932).
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