To kick off the discussion, it is important to understand the meaning of cultural relativism and objectivism which are the two main philosophical terms used. In a nut shell, cultural relativisms refer to sameness or equality in cultures. It requires that cultures are evaluated with regard to their standards and focuses more on beliefs. Objectivism on the other hand is a philosophy that centers more on rational individualism. It essentially focuses more on an individual attaining the moral goal of happiness with more emphasis on individual rights and liberties. Since societies have different beliefs and cultures, this essay seeks to examine relativism and objectivism in western and Eastern cultures. It will highlight the cultural differences that exist in terms of; lifestyle, thought, and history of their cultures.
First and foremost, there is sharp contrast in lifestyles adopted by western and eastern cultures. Notably, life in the western cultures revolves around individual’s wants, aspirations, and choices. People here extend respect to those who show respect, no consideration is given to parents or elders. In addition, decision making is an individualized affair hence no approvals are needed. Life in eastern culture on the other hand is characterized by tight and strong family bonds. To them, family is the most important thing above anything else. People in Eastern cultures spent most of their time with their families and often visit each other. Moreover, they congregate over meals and music. In the eastern culture, family plays a vital role in major decisions of each family member. Children in this culture uphold respect for both parents and elders. In addition, lifestyle in the Western culture is different from the east in terms of food. In western culture, processed and fact foods which are unhealthy dominate menus, while eastern cultures stick to traditional healthy foods. Learning in western cultures is through logical schools while in eastern cultures it is acquired from the elders and parents.
Second, there is a difference between the western and eastern philosophical thought. Western philosophers were mainly influenced by Christianity while Eastern philosophers were influenced by Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Integral Yoga, Islam, Taoism and Zen. In light of this, western thought was that; oneself is an element of the divine, life is a service to God, the universe and life are in a linear fashion, life depends on the outer world and that, people ought to dedicate themselves to achieving success and happiness. The eastern thought on the other hand was on; cosmological unity, life a journey toward eternal realities, the world being circular due to eternal recurrence, life being dependant upon the inner world, and emphasis on behavioral ethics.
Third, the beliefs and values held by the two cultures are significantly different. In Western culture, the main values are success and happiness which can be achieved by having lots of money, faith and popularity attained through outside intervention. Eastern cultures on the other hand value what is on the inner world of a human being.
The fourth distinction between the western and eastern cultures is on their history. Western culture for instance started from exploration, by virtue of this, western people are more creative in many aspects because of their past experience. Eastern culture was developed right from their area, what this means in essence is that, the people here are more conservative because they have not interacted much with other cultures.
From this discussion, it is apparent that, objectivism is rife in the western culture rather than the eastern culture. Life in western culture is centralized on an individual while in eastern culture it is built around the society. Furthermore, people in western culture get personal freedoms but are denied of strong bonds including family. People on eastern cultures on the other hand lead a socially rich life. Obtaining cultural relativism between these two diverse cultures is therefore challenging and hard.