Eastern and Western

Conflict value between East and West are in knowledge, attitude toward nature, ideal of life, and status of the person.

A. Knowledge

The Divergences between Eastern and Western approach to reality in this part:

1. Reason and Intuition

    Western -> more favor to the reason because an intellectual heritage is a method of knowledge based on reason, using observation, critical analysis, discovery of intelligible relations behind general law. The powerful weapon of the human mind is the art of methodical reasoning of employing arguments. 

     Eastern -> favor to the intuition over reason. The centre of person is not his intellect, but his "heart" which hold in unity reason and unreason, intellegence and sense. They approach life with the whole being, not only with brain.

2. Abstraction and symbolic, concrete thought

     In west- > each philosopher has a system, an abstract formula in which one encases the whole universe.

     In east-> example: chinese literature do not elaborate general principles of human behavior or discussions of systems but believe that abstract ideas are usually expressed in a concrete ways.

3. Science and wisdom

     In the East, the first goal of learning is wisdom. People in the East think if a merely intellectual knowledge does not transform the person for a better way of life, it is wasting time. For example in China, there is so much more concern with the problems of living, but there are no specialized sciences.

    In the West, there is so much specialized knowledge and so little humanized knowledge.

B. Attitude toward Nature

1. Oneness with nature

    Eastern people: love nature, feel one with nature. They are scientifically subjective in understanding nature. Their feeling toward nature are rooted in religious and philosophical beliefs, from Buddishm and Taoism.  Oneness with nature is the conviction of original religious.

    Western people: point out the active and analytical way regarding nature. Scientifically objective toward nature. They think that humanity has to master, to conquer, and to exploit nature for itw own benefits, by its discoveries and intentions. This point of view is in part with Christian theology.

2. Harmony with nature

    In the East, Taoism is the spirit of harmony with nature. They belief that the universe in which everything has its "way",its norm, its rythm.. To be tune with Tao,people shall be in harmony with oneself and with all beings. For example: pagoda towers with their curved roofs are in perfect harmony with the surroundings. In lanscape painting, it composed two radicals which is mountain and water. The first element suggested vastness, solitude, and stability; the second suppleness, endurance, and continuous movement.

C. Ideal of Life

    Western ideal: destiny of humankind, believes in personal capacities and in personal mission, and does not repeat in the face of weariness, discouragement, exhaustion, harshness of weather, or injustice among people.

    Eastern ideal: a life where the highest values come from within receptiveness to the present, a destiny of experiences, an integration of self, a quality of being, a certain human essence that requires silence and time for its fullness. Yearning for spiritual values makes the Asian glorify detachment and poverty as well as defocused from a total involvement in the "building of the earth".

D. Status of the Person

    In the West : law and society promote the rights of individual by providing one with an atmosphere of freedom in which one can exercise one's rights. One who legally major at twenty one will respond for oneself without leaning on one's family or relatives. Western people adopt principle of individuality or personalism. For example, although parents care for their young adult children, they let them live their own lives, they move into their own home where they can enjoy total freedom.

    In the East : strong ties exist among members of a family, among relatives, and among neighbors.in east, Theoretically your rights might exist, but practically they are not respected. Nobody lets you "do your own thing"; pressures are innumerable and conformism is the general rule.