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Western and Eastern Culture

4K views 23 replies 16 participants last post by  phoenixpinion 
#1 ·
I wanna know the differences, similarities in these 2 cultures.

Not for a project or anything, I just wanna know...To find out which one I belongs to... :happy:
 
#2 ·
One thing I have noticed in my experience is that the East focusses much more on living a wholesome life. There is a lot of focus on becoming internally satisfied and being at one with family and society. In the West we are much more focussed on living life to enjoy it, rather than understand it meaningfully.

I can't really explain it, but thats the jist in my eyes. I guess the word "meaningful" might be the key word when looking at the East.
 
#4 ·
the east is focused on the many, even at the expense of the self.

the west is focused on the self, even at the expense of the many.

not really meant in a selfish/generous kind of way, just as a basic philosophy
 
#7 ·
1) I find Western culture to be much more self-entitled. Individuals feel like they 'deserve' what's best for them, whereas in the East living a good life is something to work towards.
2) Western cultures tend to be more vocally opiniated.
3) Eastern cultures tend to be more conversative and family centered.
4) Eastern cultures tend to believe more in 'fate'.

Also, there is huge disparity among 'Eastern' cultures, so the term 'Eastern culture' has no real meaning. Indian, Chinese and Japense cultures alone are worlds apart.
 
#8 ·
Geert Hofstede did a quantitative comparison study on cultures around the world with 5 different variables.

Here's an explanation of every variable.
Power Distance Index (PDI) that is the extent to which the less powerful members of organizations and institutions (like the family) accept and expect that power is distributed unequally. This represents inequality (more versus less), but defined from below, not from above. It suggests that a society's level of inequality is endorsed by the followers as much as by the leaders. Power and inequality, of course, are extremely fundamental facts of any society and anybody with some international experience will be aware that 'all societies are unequal, but some are more unequal than others'.

Individualism (IDV) on the one side versus its opposite, collectivism, that is the degree to which individuals are inte-grated into groups. On the individualist side we find societies in which the ties between individuals are loose: everyone is expected to look after him/herself and his/her immediate family. On the collectivist side, we find societies in which people from birth onwards are integrated into strong, cohesive in-groups, often extended families (with uncles, aunts and grandparents) which continue protecting them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty. The word 'collectivism' in this sense has no political meaning: it refers to the group, not to the state. Again, the issue addressed by this dimension is an extremely fundamental one, regarding all societies in the world.

Masculinity (MAS) versus its opposite, femininity, refers to the distribution of roles between the genders which is another fundamental issue for any society to which a range of solutions are found. The IBM studies revealed that (a) women's values differ less among societies than men's values; (b) men's values from one country to another contain a dimension from very assertive and competitive and maximally different from women's values on the one side, to modest and caring and similar to women's values on the other. The assertive pole has been called 'masculine' and the modest, caring pole 'feminine'. The women in feminine countries have the same modest, caring values as the men; in the masculine countries they are somewhat assertive and competitive, but not as much as the men, so that these countries show a gap between men's values and women's values.

Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI) deals with a society's tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity; it ultimately refers to man's search for Truth. It indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in unstructured situations. Unstructured situations are novel, unknown, surprising, different from usual. Uncertainty avoiding cultures try to minimize the possibility of such situations by strict laws and rules, safety and security measures, and on the philosophical and religious level by a belief in absolute Truth; 'there can only be one Truth and we have it'. People in uncertainty avoiding countries are also more emotional, and motivated by inner nervous energy. The opposite type, uncertainty accepting cultures, are more tolerant of opinions different from what they are used to; they try to have as few rules as possible, and on the philosophical and religious level they are relativist and allow many currents to flow side by side. People within these cultures are more phlegmatic and contemplative, and not expected by their environment to express emotions.

Long-Term Orientation (LTO) versus short-term orientation: this fifth dimension was found in a study among students in 23 countries around the world, using a questionnaire designed by Chinese scholars It can be said to deal with Virtue regardless of Truth. Values associated with Long Term Orientation are thrift and perseverance; values associated with Short Term Orientation are respect for tradition, fulfilling social obligations, and protecting one's 'face'. Both the positively and the negatively rated values of this dimension are found in the teachings of Confucius, the most influential Chinese philosopher who lived around 500 B.C.; however, the dimension also applies to countries without a Confucian heritage.
Here's data for the US and Japan.
United States - US or American Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions Explained
Japan - Japanese Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions Explained
 
#9 ·
What we say when we say "eastern" is now kind of arbitrary and a relic of the past, due to intense globalization of the world by the West. Everything but the most remote places is now Western. Unfortunately, what used to be true East has now become watered-down East.

However, with that said, here is a very interesting contrast in original schools of thought about the world. You could call it philosophy, although in the ancient East they had no equivalent word for what we mean by "philosophy."

The "Ceramic" Model is traditional Western thought.
The "Automatic" Model is modern Western thought.

The "Organic" Model is traditional Eastern thought.



 
#10 ·
What we say when we say "eastern" is now kind of arbitrary and a relic of the past, due to intense globalization of the world by the West. Everything but the most remote places is now Western. Unfortunately, what used to be true East has now become watered-down East.

However, with that said, here is a very interesting contrast in original schools of thought about the world. You could call it philosophy, although in the ancient East they had no equivalent word for what we mean by "philosophy."

The "Ceramic" Model is traditional Western thought.
The "Automatic" Model is modern Western thought.

The "Organic" Model is traditional Eastern thought.

I loved his the Way of Zen; it got me started on my Buddhist path and eventually led me to Nichiren Buddhism.
 
#11 ·
I've spent my whole summer in South Korea.

The jist of the other posts are generally correct.

Western culture is brain-dead YOLO stuff, living for the now, consume consume consume, don't give a fuck, 'I didn't choose to be born so fuck the world', me me me. But it's also more liberal. For those with good morals, the liberal attitude of Western culture creates a nice amount of freedom, but life is greatly stifled by the amount of dickheads conditioned to utter wankerishness by the consumer culture we have.

Eastern culture is humble, respectful, diligent, aspirational, thoughtful. It's very safe, relaxed, caring and people much more typically communicate about intelligent things here, rather than new fashions, fads, gossip or other shite. On the down side, some culturally conditioned rules can be a bit of a drag, like the fact that older people always have the final say. Then again I quite like this side of it because it creates an inbuilt sense of respect for others.

I dunno. I'm trying to give an even opinion but in all honesty Asian culture is far better in my opinion. I'm British but have spent a long enough time in South Korea, and also India, to learn a thing or two about their ways. I think Asian culture is far, far better, to be perfectly honest. I hate the average citizens of my country. Of course on an individual level everyone is very nice to talk to, but collectively the people of Western countries are somewhat of a lost cause, they have no direction or desire, probably because their forefathers already 'won' the world for them, whereas Asians are still fighting that battle so they still need to look out for each other, hence their sense of community is still much more tightly bound, even in the big cities.

I dunno. Some people would complain that, for example, they aren't allowed the freedom of getting blind drunk and having a wail of a time on the streets of Korea because everyone here thinks badly of it, but come on... is such hedonism really necessary in society? The things we consider as 'normal' or 'free' are actually just symptoms of a bigger, failed social picture. Western culture is reaching the peak of the civilisational cycle, in my opinion. We fought, we won, we grew, we prospered, and now with such affluence, hedonism and complacency has taken hold, and so begins the demise.

What the fuck am I talking about. Sorry, bit of a ramble. Basically Eastern culture has far less of the wasteful flaws of the West. It's as simple as that. I love it here.

Oh and the same goes for Arab and African culture. Aside from the dogmatic, idiotic religious stuff we hear about, the average citizens are actually very humble and respectable people.

Consumerism is a Western creation so it's destroying us first. The rest of the world will follow. I think China/East Asia will go next. Then India. It'll creep into Africa. Russia will be last. By which time, the cycle will have gone right around and the poor Europeans will probably have the communal ways I talk of.
 
#14 ·
Very well said! I completely agree with you. The point you made saying western culture has reached it's peak is particularly sticking out in my mind. So scary...
However I do think there are still very good aspects to western culture as well, but I agree, at the rate it's going, the negatives are outweighing the positives. Nonetheless, of course I live in the west and I wouldn't have it any other way, however I'm grateful to have eastern roots to keep me enlightened and aware of the world around me. Respect is a human value, and I feel like its becoming lost throughout the world, sea to sea...we need to come back to this basic value to appreciate all cultures and in turn improve our own here in the west.

My (idealist) prediction of the future: globalization- more and more easterners are going to move to the west, thus bringing Along their cultural values and we'll have a happy melting pot of good values from the east and the west and eventually become one happy culture :)
 
#12 ·
People you are generalising wayyy too much, I don't really think that the so-called 'Eastern' and 'Western' culture is a credible way to classify modern culture in the first place. OP, what exactly do you mean by Western and Eastern Culture? IMO these two are really too broad to be compared side by side. Besides, let's say that we do have a definition, then what do we classify the in-between cultures as? West? East? Like Korea where the last poster made observations about, its culture has numerous influences and sources, like Korean, Japanese, and in the modern day American culture. It's the same as in most other countries, like China, and where I'm from, Hong Kong, where there's a Chinese background with infused colonial colours, and with massive influences from Taiwan, Japan and Korea too. Every place's culture is influenced by neighbouring countries and peoples. IMO we can compare different cultures per se: Chinese - Korean, or English-American, but we can't compare 'East' and 'West' culture because we aren't taking into account the individual cultures that are classified in the two sides of the dichotomy.
 
#20 ·
May I say that I really love this thread ? It definitely made me think too. I was brought up in the West, but only to realised that I do have an Eastern heart.


I just want to say that, all is not lost too. I mean, I am also from HK, if you can say that, as I should claim my father's birthplace as my "hometown" traditionally, you may say that my "heung hai" is in HK. Not by the Western version which is my own birthplace.

Things that kept the same is:
- People still respect the elderlies, there is a "respect the elders" day. There is also a "children's day" too. There are also family orientated days like Mid-Autumn Festival. Which celebrates the changing of the season.
- There is respect the dead. Each April or Autumn. Parents take their kids to sweep the grave to remind themselves of their own roots, where they came from, who was in their family etc. Remind them of any proud moments gained in their own family etc.
- People still give red packets, even corporations are expected to give this out too. As an extra salary packet for that "13th month". This is the extra money which the red packets should come from. Isn't this nice that the East still have this ? So it doesn't eat into a typical family's budget...
- New year celebration. With new year, a reminder of new hopes for the coming year, new targets, and reminder of what one needs to achieve, change, and better oneself.
- Ethics. Even though you may see HK as a British colony, it brought with it, values of Christianity, which you may not see on the superficial level. Even though the basic of Chinese values is Confucianism, basis of Christianity is also the same ethical standard as Confucianism. "Thy shall not kill", "Love thy neighbour" are just a few things which people are tolerant about etc. Why do you think that HK as a Chinese city can be so tolerable and accepting for so many ethnic people? The same is in the UK. Tolerance for harmony. Ethic and embracing differences. Laughing and acceptance of oneself.
- Respecting history and culture. As Britain gave HK so many beneficial things and made itself a wealthy city, many people do pay homage to the Queen. Even though she is technically the leader of the police force. You should talk to the older generation to see how many actually respect her. It gentrified the chaos.
- Influences from Taiwan, Japan and Korea is more on the music side. The culture more or less remained the same. Japan and Korean still hold very strong Confucious values, and respect for the young too. Taiwan is a little bit more free, but people are more traditional than HK, whereas HK has this strong global ethic vibe to it. So, even if you do business in HK, the relationship is so important. Value, and respect is still adhere too. Sales are made through knowledge to the person who gave you the time of day to sell. Not free knowledge. There is still a level of business ethic going on.
- There is still unity. Especially when SARs, or whenever there is a typhoon, or whenever there is flooding in China, people rally round and donate money.
- Some people still give a maintenance amount to their parents to pay respect for bringing them up. This is not taxable like in the UK or the West. HK still have low tax. People do not even get lazy and rely on the state that much like in the UK... as if it Godsgiven right to be as such. People don't do that.
 
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