Difference Between Chinese And Western Culture

751 Words4 Pages
Learning to appreciate the differences between the two cultures is important and helps to broaden the understanding of cultural differences. Western cultures are based on individualism rather than collectivism. In many Western societies, emphasis is placed on individual rights unlike Chinese culture, where the country, society or family are based above self. At first glance, Chinese is obviously different from Western Culture. We have different surface culture. We eat different foods, don different attire, use language in different ways, manners differ, customs and body language vary and music, art, literature are very diverse. An article, by Alexandra Loewen, expressed the difference in greetings. Chinese people usually greet by asking questions such as have you had dinner and where are you going. Westerners may find these questions invasive. In Western societies, questions like this would not be asked; simply saying “hello, how are you?” suffices. There is no distinction between formal and informal greetings in China, however, in Western societies, it is polite to shake hands in formal situations. Etiquette is another dissimilarity. In China, knives and forks aren’t popular, chopsticks are used and bowls are picked up off the table. The Chinese eat off their chopsticks and do not cut up food. Presentation of food also differs. In China, dishes are centrally placed, for everyone to share while in Western countries, everyone selects an individual dish. Delving deeper into