Moral Particularism Versus Moral Universalism in the Context of Female Genital Mutilation in Ebonyi State: A Critical Philosophical Analysis

This study provides a critical philosophical analysis of the debate between moral particularism and moral universalism as applied to female genital mutilation (FGM) in Ebonyi State, located in Nigeria's South East geopolitical zone. This debate is philosophically significant because it determines whether cultural practices can be evaluated by universal moral standards or only by internal cultural criteria, and FGM represents one of the most contested sites of this debate in African ethics. A mixed-methods philosophical design is employed, combining systematic philosophical analysis of particularist and universalist positions from Jonathan Dancy, Martha Nussbaum, and African feminist philosophers with qualitative case research involving 35 interviews with community health workers, traditional rulers, feminist activists, and philosophy academics in Ebonyi State. Secondary philosophical literature published between 2019 and 2024 informs the theoretical analysis. The study addresses a gap in the literature by providing the first systematic philosophical analysis of FGM in the specific Ebonyi context using the particularism-universalism framework. Findings establish that the particularist defence of FGM as a cultural practice fails on its own internal philosophical terms because it cannot explain why the practice is obligatory rather than optional within the community's own value system. The study contributes an original philosophical argument that converges particularist and universalist approaches in a critique of FGM that respects cultural context. Keywords: moral particularism, universalism, female genital mutilation, African feminist ethics, Ebonyi State.