East vs West
Between the East and West, we can identify a number of differences. These differences stem from the culture, dress, religion, philosophy, sports, arts and languages. When we define the term East, it does not necessarily mean the direction in which the sunrises, but also the eastern hemisphere that includes a number of counties such as India, China, Japan, etc. By the West, we imply the Western hemisphere to which countries such as the United States of America, Canada, England, France, Italy, and Netherland belong. Key between the East and the West can be identified through an examination of the people of the East and West, their history and societal construction. This article attempts to highlight the varied differences between the East and West, through an understanding of the two.
What is the East?
The Eastern hemisphere of the globe is considered much older in comparison with the West. In terms of religion, the east is contemplative. There are differences in their religious thinking as well. The religious activity of the East in opposition to the West is turned towards the spirit. It is more spiritual than the west. Confucianism, Shinto, Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism are far eastern and Indian religions. Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Zoroastrianism are the religions of the Middle East.
The eastern medicine or the Oriental medicine is constituted by the systems of Ayurveda, Chinese medicine, Traditional Tibetan Medicine and Traditional Korean medicine. Far and Middle Eastern languages comprise of Japanese, Chinese, Malaya, and Polynesian languages, Korean, Thai and Vietnamese. Indian languages comprise of Sanskrit, Hindi, other Indian dialects and Dravidian languages.
The eastern art primarily comprises of musical and dance forms. Several dance forms can be seen in the eastern countries like Japan, Malaysia and Thailand. India holds a special position when it comes to dancing as it is home to various dance and music systems. Also, when paying attention to the society and the people, in the East, the societal ties are much stronger. The position of values, norms, mores play a significant role. In Eastern countries, one can identify collective cultures. The interdependence and the feeling of ‘us’ are greater than individual success. Psychologists have been very interested in finding out the impact the type of culture has on the individual. Now let us move on to the West to understand how the East differs from the West.
What is the West?
Unlike, the East the West is believed to be young. It is also emotive as far as their religions and cultures are concerned. When speaking of religious thinking, the West is active in the sense that all its activity is turned externally. Western religions are based on Abrahamic monotheism, and they derive mostly from the Middle Eastern milieu. Western languages comprise of English, German, Celtic, Italian, Greek and the other European languages. Arabic and Russian are also considered western languages.
The east and the west differ much when it comes to arts and architecture. The Renaissance art is known to have created waves in the west, and it is true that several museums in the western countries have housed art pieces of the Renaissance period. Even when it comes to medication, the approach is much more scientific. When examining the culture, it is mostly individualistic. The emphasis laid on norms and value systems, ideas such as social stigma and caste systems are rare. Thus, we can see that the east and the west are laden with great number of differences between them.
What is the Difference Between East and West?
• The West is young whereas the east is old.
• The east is contemplative whereas the west is emotive as far as their religions and cultures are concerned.
• In Eastern countries, one can identify collective cultures whereas in the West it is more individualistic.
• Eastern religions are Confucianism, Shinto, Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism.
• Western religions are based on Abrahamic monotheism, and they derive mostly from the Middle Eastern milieu.
• Eastern languages comprise of Japanese, Chinese, Malaya, and Polynesian languages, Korean, Thai and Vietnamese. Indian languages comprise of Sanskrit, Hindi, other Indian dialects and Dravidian languages.
• Western languages comprise of English, German, Celtic, Italian, Greek and the other European languages.
Image Courtesy:
1.”Performing Gion Kouta” by Joi Ito from Inbamura, Japan – Performing Gion Kouta.[CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
2.”Wedding breakfast entertainment arp”.[Public Domain], via Wikimedia Commons
