WESTERN THOUGHTS

WESTERN THOUGHTS

  • They are characterized by its rigorous way and analytic approach that tends to focus on rational, empirical, and component-based analysis.

CHARACTERISTICS OF WESTERN THOUGHTS

Individualism

  • Independency, self-sufficiency, and personal achievement are highly valued.

  • It is the view of the individual human as a “self-made man”.

Dualism

  • It involves the belief that the mind and body are distinct and separate entities with different properties and purposes.

  • There is an existence of both physical and non-physical substances.

Logical, Scientific, and Rational

  • The self has the ability to analyze, make logical distinctions, and act on reason.

  • It allows the self to be systematic and have a universal understanding in the physical world, human behavior, consciousness, and ethics.

Being Ethical

  • Walking towards one’s goal without causing ill to others. It helps govern human behavior and decision making of good and bad, right and wrong, and moral and immoral.

WESTERN PHILOSOPHY

Hands-on Style

  • Western philosophers focused on the real-life applications of their knowledge.

CHARACTERISTICS OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY

Focuses on Five Categories

  1. Metaphysics - study of existence

  2. Epistemology - study of knowledge

  3. Ethics - study of action

  4. Politics - study of force

  5. Aesthetics - study of art

1. METAPHYSICS (STUDY OF EXISTENCE)

Descriptive Metaphysics

  • Aristotle, Kant, and Strawson

  • Content to describe the actual structure of our thoughts about the world.

  • Aims to describe the most general features of our conceptual scheme, that is, to describe reality as it manifests itself to the human understanding.

  • Conceptual analysis is its main method.

Reversionary Metaphysics

  • Descartes, Leibniz, and Berkeley

  • Concerned with producing a better structure.

  • Attempts to revise our ordinary way of thinking and our ordinary conceptual scheme in order to provide an intellectually and morally preferred picture of the world.

  • Reversionary metaphysicians generally like to establish a well-organized system beyond the world of experience.

2. EPISTEMOLOGY (STUDY OF KNOWLEDGE)

  • Inquiry into the nature, origin, conditions, and limits of knowledge.

  • Scientific and logical understanding of the world got its priority with an emphasis on epistemology.

3. ETHICS (STUDY OF ACTION)

For Plato

  • In Republic, Plato has mentioned ethics which are based on Eudaimonia.

  • The four virtues are: Wisdom, Temperance, Courage, and Justice

  • The purpose of his ethics was to help people achieve Eudaimonia which is also known as fulfillment or well-being

For Aristotle

  • In Nicomachean Ethics, one of the biggest questions for Aristotle stands as ‘What is Good’?

  • The good for humanity is to attain virtue, to become a virtuous person.

  • Moral Virtues: Courage, Temperance, Liberality, Magnificence, Magnanimity, Ambition, Truthfulness, Wittiness, Righteous, Modesty, Friendliness

  • Aristotle said ‘you become what you repeatedly do’, so in order to lead a happy life a person should as well as live their life with virtue

4. POLITICS (STUDY OF FORCE)

  • Evolved from ancient Greco-Roman ideas to liberal democracy and human rights ideas prevalent today.

  • Key values: individual liberty, the rule of law, limited government, consent of the governed and democracy.

  • Laid the base of political systems in Western countries like the USA, European countries and other liberal democracies.

  • It values ideas like liberty, equality, property rights and representation which form the basis of the Western style of governance

5. AESTHETICS (STUDY OF ARTS)

For Immanuel Kant

  • His views on aesthetics and teleology are most fully presented in his Critique of Judgment published in 1790.

  • An aesthetic judgment, in Kant’s usage, is a judgment which is based on feeling, and in particular on the feeling of pleasure or displeasure.

  • Three kinds of aesthetic judgment:

  1. judgments of the agreeable

  2. judgments of beauty (or, equivalently, judgments of taste)

  3. judgments of the sublime.

LOGIC, REASONING, CATEGORIZATION

  • Western philosophers tend to break down their ideas as much as they could.

  • They focused on ideas in parts rather than the whole.

INTRODUCTION OF EASTERN PHILOSOPHY

Group Identity

  • The self finds meaning in its connection with others and the world.

Unity

  • Life’s purpose is to achieve cosmological unity and harmony with the universe.

Cycle of Life

  • Life is circular, and recurrence with the environment is key

Virtue and Selflessness

  • A selfless life, satisfied with what one has, is virtuous

Spiritual

  • The journey is more about spiritual growth than material success

Holistic Thinking

  • Focuses on the big picture, generalizing ideas to reflect universal truths

CONFUCIANISM

Founder of Confucianism

  • Confucius (Kong Fuzi)

Goal of Confucianism

  • Social Harmony and Ethical Conduct

Code of Ethical Conduct

  • Focuses on harmonious social relationships and proper behavior

Five Relationships

  • Emphasizes social harmony through ethical behavior and proper conduct in relationships such as ruler-subject, father-son, husband-wife, elder brother-younger brother, and friend-friend.

Interwoven Identity

  • Self-concept is tied to community identity and shared successes or failures

Self-Cultivation

  • The goal is to develop into a virtuous, noble person (chun tzu).

Subdued Self

  • Personal desires are suppressed for the collective good, maintaining societal order.

TAOISM

Founder of Taoism

  • Laozi (Lao Tzu)

Goal of Taoism

  • Harmony with Tao or “The Way”

Laozi authored “Tao Te Ching” emphasizing harmony with the tao and simplicity of life

Harmony with the Tao: Living in accordance with the natural flow of life (Tao - “The Way”), embracing spontaneity (Wuwei - “Effortless Action or Non-Action”) and simplicity

Fluid Perspective

  • Views the world in a free flowing, paradoxical way

Simplicity

  • Rejects Confucian hierarchy, seeking a simple, natural lifestyle.

Selflessness

  • The self is part of the universe; balance with nature and society is key, focusing on equality and harmony

BUDDHISM

  • Founder of Buddhism: Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha)

  • Goal of Buddhism: Nirvana

  • Nirvana is the ultimate goal in Buddhism, signifying complete freedom from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, and the end of suffering, desire, and attachment.

  • Enlightenment (Bodhi) refers to the awakening or realization of reality's true nature, such as the source of suffering. It is also the process that leads to nirvana

  • Source of Suffering: The self is the cause of all suffering, and liberation comes from renouncing it.

  • Illusion of Self: The self is an illusion, created by ignorance and attachment

COMPARISON OF EASTERN AND WESTERN

Eastern Concepts

  • Focus on others and the feeling of others

  • Collectivism – focus on other.

  • Tilted towards less assets (thus the mantra less is more).

  • More inclined towards long life – long life is equated with wealth

  • Wealth and poverty is the result of fortune and luck.

  • Values the wisdom of years and seniority

Western Concepts

  • Focus on oneself and personal needs

  • Predicated on putting egoism first – focused on oneself.

  • Inclined in more acquisition of material things.

  • Obsessed with being successful.

  • Wealth and poverty is the result of enterprise and hard work.

  • Celebrates the youth and being young

CULTURE OF EASTERN AND WESTERN

Eastern Religion

  • Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Shenism, Taoism, and Islam are some common religion

Western Religion

  • Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are some common religions.

Eastern Liberty

  • People prefer to approach difficult situations by using good manners and tact, not aggression

Western Liberty

  • More liberal. More open and blunt. (e.g., topics like sex or birth of a child are openly discussed). More open to expressing their feelings. If they are angry, they vent it out.

Eastern Decision-Making

  • One‘s own choice is given preference over the family‘s. Elders are considered as the leaders of the home and children often refer their choice to them and obey what they say. Important decisions related to the children‘s future are normally made by the elders.

Western Decision-Making

  • More flexible and free to make decisions on his own.

Eastern Arrange Marriage

  • Common. Normally arranged by the parents of the couple or other elders. They believe in the concept that love comes after marriage.

Western Arrange Marriage

  • Not common. People believe in love as the basis for marriage

CULTURE VANTAGE POINT

Eastern

Hierarchy: Seems Oppressive (Relationship)

Event-Focus: Seems Inconsiderate (Time)

Harmony: Seems Dishonest (Speech)

Patronage: Seems Corrupt (Money)

Hospitality: Seems Orientation (Food)

Shame-Based: Seems Lawless (Ethics)

Western

Equality: Seems Disrespectful (Relationship)

Task-Focus: Seems Unkind (Time)

Honesty: Seems Rude (Speech)

Independence: Seems Stingy (Money)

Efficiency: Seems Neglectful (Food)

Guilt-Based: Seems Shameless (Ethics)