HUMAN NATURE: MORALITY & PURPOSE

There are a number of views regarding the origin and nature of human morality

* Moral realism or moral objectivism holds that moral codes exist outside of human opinion -- that certain things are right or wrong regardless of human opinion on the topic. Objective morality may be seen as stemming from the inherent nature of humanity, divine command, or both.
* Moral relativism holds that moral codes are a function of human values and social structures, and hold no meaning outside social convention.
* Moral absolutism is the view that certain acts are right or wrong regardless of context.
* Moral universalism compromises between moral relativism and moral absolutism and holds that there is, or should be, a common universal core of morality.


* Materialism and philosophical naturalism hold that there is no external purpose to human life. Proponents of this view often adopt the philosophy of secular humanism.
* Teleology holds that there is inherent purpose to human existence. This purpose may arise from the inherent nature of humanity itself (what a human is "supposed to be," as in the case of objectivist philosophy), from mankind's relationship to the divine (what God wants humanity to be, as in the case of religion), or from both (as when the divine commands are seen as being in accord with the inherent nature of humanity and humanity's best interests).