24 Funny Illustrations That Show The Cultural Differences Between The East And The West Made By This Artist
Since we can travel around the world and visit different countries, people noticed cultural differences that are here to this day. That is what makes traveling fun, to change your usual setting with something new and unexplored.
Yang Liu a young artist from Beijing currently living in Germany illustrates the social and cultural differences between her Eastern and Western worlds in her project “Ost trifft West,” or “East Meets West,” which conveys a strong message on the differences she personally experienced.
"Ost trifft West" is a series of infographic posters that compare German and Chinese people in accurate and humorous ways. The infographics highlight important human elements such as self-perception, opinion expression, and mood.
So without further ado, we invite you to explore the differences captured by this incredibly observant artist.
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The Boss
Meanwhile in China: "Sorry, you're just not tall enough to get promoted "
If you wonder how Yang Liu gathered information, such as whether she used interviews, research, or theories, her reply is this: “The fact is that every single illustration is my very personal experience in the past 13-17 years, and this work was made as a documentation of my own life,” she said. As an artist who was raised in multiple cultures, she doesn’t feel like she belongs to any of them: “I am feeling myself more as a person who belongs to all the places I have been,” says Liu.
Means Of Transportation
Expressing Opinion
As a german I can deeply relate. Whats the thing about Smalltalk or talking around the bush in soooo many countries? If you have to say something then do it and not let me guess what you really mean.......why wasting time? *sight*
To add, it is absolutely possible to say what you think in a direct, but still polite or nice or kind way.
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In the Eastern cultures you suppress your opinion to avoid hurting someone or avoid being judged. In Western cultures you express your opinion because you don’t get judged or penalized for being truthful. It a way of life, it’s deep routed in the upbringing
"You don't get penalised for being truthful". Tell that to nearly every whistle-blower
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Yeah talk talk talk and get nowhere. Actually that's politics too.
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Out the places I've lived (China, US, Japan, and a little Korea), people in China overall have been the most direct. A lot of direct questions and direct criticism where in the US people would just smile and become passive-aggressive and in Japan people would more likely silently bear their thoughts within themselves
My mum and I both take the scenic route. It's not necessarily about avoiding the point, we just get distracted part way through (my mum interrupted herself mid-word once). It's not deliberate and it would be lovely to keep the word count to a minimum, but its not always possible
Total racism, Go to India or China, they will tell you anything directly to your face.
That’s because there’s a language barrier. Say that in English….INSTANT international crisis because some American or hot-headed Irishman clocked the s**t outta some Indian or Chinese (include other nationalities here _____) individual(s). It IS a cultural thing, not sure about “race” per se. I’m an inveterate American traveler, & I’m frequently embarrassed/disgraced by my own country with the way we behave as guests in someone else’s “house” (country). To those whom I’ve offended whilst learning in my travels, I am so sorry :(
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Agreed. I prefer directness. I often tell people listen. I'm psychotic, not psychic. There's a difference
This is a clear demonstration of some of the pitfalls between cross cultural communication. At first glance to some, this is indicative of vague conversation, when it's less about 'beating around the bush' as it an example of cultural difference in the unique perspective of time/space. As in the way time itself is viewed and valued. When I say that I am talking about the western notion that time is linear,and business is to be conducted on that shortest distance line between the 'start' and 'end', with little regard than to agenda. Eastern philosophy views times in a more 'ball of string' concept, and business needs to maintain synergy and group harmony in accordance with agenda, and with time (end)not as fundamentally important as result. Hence, you will get more obtuse forms of communication that may appear to be inefficient, but may be more constructive. Consider this confusion as a perfect example of perspective
I completely agree with the 'harmony' concept. I'm Asian but grew up in the US and visit family back home often, so I grew up with both "sets of rules", so to speak. Part of the reason for the round-about-path is to feel out the other person's view, so you do not offend them while making your point; harmony. Another reason is that asking about their health, family, pets, holiday vacation, etc...all the social questions, are trying to establish that you care about the other person as a human being, not merely another business transaction, political opponent, etc. The third reason is that by playing devil's advocate, or looking at different things connecting or contributing to your point and discussing them, you are also greasing the skids for the other person to arrive at the same destination as you, but in a less combative way. In Asian culture, if someone is "beating around the bush" too long, you can get them to cut to the chase by looking like you've gotta leave soon.
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I met a guy from Germany who claimed to be a teacher for Chinese kids who immigrated to Germany. All he kept repeating, and interupting with was how all Chinese people looked like watermelon cut in half. Round head, flat face, and he made "swooosh" sound as he sliced down in front of his face, he said this was how all his friends viewed Chinese people, and he just wanted to be upfront about it. His wife was Chinese. There's a line between being straightforward and being a d!ck. Being from a particular region in the world doesn't excuse you of that
Depends on the topic. I remember in speech class getting different topics to write and make a speech. Get about three minutes to make your point and sport it. Sometimes I went over my three minutes and once I made my point and supported it within one minute. Know your audience, is key.
I want to share with the world my sad experience with a fake cryptocurrency scammer after falling for his gimmicks. I was cat fished by a man on POF, he then introduced me to this fake crypto miner. Honestly, everything the scammer showed me looks legit worth giving it a shot as it's a short-term investment with lots of profits. My investment later turned sour and It was the saddest moment of my life because I couldn’t believe what had happened. How I just lost $638,000.00 within a period of 3 months to this scammer. I reported to the authorities and they weren't helping in any way to help me recover my lost fund. I had lost at a point and was falling into depression until I came across an article online about ethical hackers and their expertise in recovering BTC. I searched for one and that's when I discovered a professional recovery hacker who could help me recover my funds, to my surprise they {RECOVERYCOINGROUP AT GMAIL DOT COM} were able to trace and recoup every penny I thought I
I had to teach a group of Germans how to do small talk in English for attending medical conferences and such, and after they had attended one, I asked them how it went and they said: "Oh, it was OK, they were all Swiss so we mostly just sat in silence. It was nice!"
Southerners especially, my husbands sister would come for the holidays & when it was time to leave…she’d say, “Well, we best get going, get home before dark…” at least five times before actually standing the hell up, with ridiculous chit chat between each proclamation of the need to “get going”. Finally standing up, which should be an epic victory, but no. Takes a few steps, she’ll stop, turns & asks a stupid question or starts inane conversation…all the effing way to the car! I’ve timed it, & I swear it can take close to two hours to finally see her back out of the driveway (and after that? Go ahead, try not to yell “yee haw” & p**s the husband off!). I ended up just NOT walking her to the car anymore. My husband understood, he thought it was ridiculous but said he was just used to it. I’m a born & raised Californian, we just don’t have patience for that c**p.
if we both can see blue's trajectory..then let's go with that,shall we?..none of us got time for all that going around these time-consuming roundabouts...i respect you... you respect me... let's crack on.......
Here goes my one comment for now, and judging from what I'm seeing in terms of the art and the observations the artist is making, these are personal insights as she herself has stated. While they are interesting, whimsical at times, do they relate to me so far? Probably not. Interesting though, she's found a good gimmick I'd say. Enough said, don't let me spoil it for y'all!
I don't understand this statement. I lived on three continents. The people in Southamerica mostly are the most direct ones. That includes also most women. European woman are the most complicated. They expect that one can mindread. Most Asian woman give short hints. Trying to avoid direct topics. One needs to learn certain code words. Different in different countries. Asians in business give straight orders, no answer expected.
So the West is just straightforward and the East reflects a little longer than usual?...... (K - drama style)
I'm Canadian. I don't think I could sugar coat or "talk around the bush" if I tried. It's just not the way I am. If someone doesn't like the truth, 1. Do NOT ask me. 2. Far FAR less people actually want 💯 truth. They want to be told its OK for them to do x,y,z.
I don't know where thes E vs W line starts. If we are talking about E europ, expecially Balkan. They are by far moste direct.
No one wants to be straightforward these days. I think people are afraid of offending others. OR, God forbid, not being "politically correct".
Same in Africa, again depending on cultural background .. white folks due to the western background tend to say their view straight, whereas Africans think that that is disrespectful or rude so they tend to talk around a point.
The point of not been short is respect,in order for me to tell you something bothers me about u and not make it a war,I have to explain or talk to you about it out of respect,that way we can I guess peacefully talk about our differences
Expressing opinion is only relevant if the opinion has an impact. So on private base this is an accurate comparison. However, looking at it from a political point, shows that the opinion and "plan" of our politics is not direct at all, I must not be, this is the whole sense in making dumb people believe
I agree but in many western countries it's about avoiding upsetting or offending because apparently tly feelings are more important than work performance and profits or basically that delicate persons feelings are more important than that annoyed person doing ALL the work while delicate person avoids doing any. Asia from what o k ow seems to be about avoiding offending a senior instead of saying "this isn't working or won't work or isn't feasible" so it's those below who are blamed when things go bad
Interestingly I was teaching a couple of Indian nurses the other day and they discussed how the English never seem to say what they really mean and the challenge it presented when they're trying to work out exactly what someone is saying. So it's not always the case.
Thing i loved about my boyfriend, he was very direct and helped me work on saying what i mean and directly asking for what I want.
This is very interesting. I wonder if the different political systems have something to do with this?
I took it to be a reflection of the greater emphasis on diplomacy and saving face in Eastern cultures. So, for example, maybe they tell someone there is a problem but frame it in a way that allows the offender to understand they erred without being directly accusatory. There is certainly some value to that, to keep temperatures down, making it easier to make whatever progress is desired. It's pretty much the opposite of 99% of social media commentary.
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Sure, we are all aware of cultural differences around the world, such as social norms, family structure, religion, cuisine, and the more day-to-day ones that Liu has depicted in her illustrations. Historical, geographic, economic, and social factors are just some of the ones that form differences in the way we perceive and interact with the world around us.
Standing In A Line
Attitude Towards Punctuality
When moving to a new country, no matter how close or far from your home, the beginning can be quite challenging and time-consuming. In order to adapt might require some adjusting to a new culture and adopting its values, beliefs, customs, and behaviors. Building new relationships and keeping an open mind is the right way to start.
Dealing With Problems
Expressing Feelings
In Liu’s illustrations’ on one side, we might recognize ourselves more than on the other one, and it might raise questions: what else is different? How does that affect our mental health? Could I maybe learn new things and include them in my life to make it easier?
What do you, Pandas, think when seeing Liu’s depiction? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Traveling
What’s Trending
Noise Level At The Restaurant
*noise level everywhere in China. Chinese cities are full of sounds coming out of absolutely everywhere.
Everyday Life Of Elderly
Mood And Weather
Self Perception
People, this isn't saying that Chinese have low self-esteem or don't value themselves. It's comparing the individualism of the West to the collective mindset of the East. To a westerner the self is the primary consideration; in the east the self is a small part of the wider community
Cultural Perceptions: Germans vs. Chinese
I mean the Chinese one is not wrong. Saying as someone who lived in Germany
At A Party
The one on the right actually reminds me of typical Dutch birthday parties 😁
Children In The Family
Three Meals A Day
More variety in Germany? Oh no, I get it. Cold and hot meals. Ok.
Contacts And Connections
Cure For Stomach Ache
Sundays On The Streets
Lifestyle: Independent vs. Dependent
So basically "disappoint your family in any way and be disowned" in China. No real chance to develop your own genuine personality in a world like that
Ideal Of Beauty
Is this to do with skin colour or tone? Germans prefer darker skin and Chinese prefer lighter skin tones? If it is not, I don’t get it.
Shower Time
Novelties
Attention trolls: please stop calling this Beijing-born Chinese artist a racist, or that she is stereotyping her own country
I love her (accurate) take on things and I think it's so true that it actually makes it humourous. ..... I haven't read every comment but a lot of them seem to be 'defending' the west! Why?? These pics are just some general sweeping statements to make us smile .... Well it worked for me! Happy Tuesday 😉
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Just goes to show there are things to be learned from both (and other) cultures. Once we get further down our shared timeline, hopefully we can choose the best of all and further humankind.
Again, wish I could upvote this comment at least 100 times. (Hopefully, fingers crossed, but not holding my breath 😪)
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I feel like this should be titled differences in China and Germany rather than East and West. Both areas are culturally diverse enough that using one country as a metric isn't really fair.
I relate completely as a middle eastern living in the west.
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Yep. Acknowledging differences between cultures is the exact opposite of racist unless it's done with a disdainful or xenophobic undertone. It's so gross that it's become the norm to cry racism for any humor relating to or observations of CULTURAL variations. Hell, it is almost never coming from a racist place when people make jokes or discuss differences between actual races in today's day. 99.999% of what many people have tantrums about and call racist only shows their inability to process the literal definition of the term. It's basically always about their fragile egos being damaged due to a lifetime of privilege making them weak, narcissistic and simple enough to still do something so obviously embarrassing, wrong, dividing and...just f****n gross. It's regressive fragility masquerading as progressive. I can't imagine anyone is still so enslaved by their delusion as to believe this contemporary bastardized version of social consciousness and tolerance is progressive.
It took me 4 pictures to realize that this wasn't talking about the East and West coast of the U.S 🤦🏻♀️
well you DO live in a country that calls its indigenous sport tournament the "world series" so we're quite used to you guys thinking usa is the world ;-) /jk
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The art is neat, but most seem more like judgements than observations. Very interesting.
It seems to me that a lot of the negative reactions are to Yet Another BP Post That Lacks Subtlety. It's strange to me that the title of the series was painted is such broad strokes: Berlin vs. Beijing would have been more poetic and reflective of the observed differences, and it would also recognize that painting something like half of all humans vs the other almost half of all humans is probably too broad of a stroke. I also, personally, dislike this from an infographic perspective because a good graphic condenses complicated information while making it more accessible and the graphics... do the opposite? These observations, without cultural context, and presented as a full card each seem to be adding space and removing information, and I can tell from other comments that I wasn't the only one who found some of these counterintuitive or confusing.
It's quite odd, as this infographic could almost be used for the opposite East/West scenario if you were to swap countries. Japan would easily take the place of Germany, and the US would easily take the place of China in pretty much every one of these infographic situations.
well yes but Japan was colonised by America in the 1800s (Perry et al) so it's pretty much following western standards on most things except humility and manners, where it's more eastern.
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There's a lot to be said about a "we" mind set and "me" mind set. I remember how people took what they needed from the stores for their families to eat after the earthquake/tsunami. I wondered if in western culture if people would just raid everything for themselves. I don't operate on a "me" mentality and people will take advantage of your lack of selfishness. It's sad.
Blue vs. Red? I couldn’t find anywhere an explanation as to which was East and which is West. Being from neither country/region/nationality/compass point, I am not familiar enough with either culture to recognize them. A simple key statement would have been helpful.
I don't think any of them were designed to make either side seem preferable. For most of them, I personally liked the West becuase that's what I'm used to. It's just meant to show the contrast between different cultures.
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Most of these could just as easily be the difference between Northern and Southern Europe, so the title is wildly inaccurate.
She is a racist because she has claimed Chinese cultural habits as the same for all of Asia.......... The article is labeled wrong. It should be the EU and China not west and east
So, are you racist for saying all of the EU is one cultural block? Because all of the EU is not the same, so you would be incorrect to say that. You could ask for clarification rather than assuming the worst.
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It's also important to recognize generalities. For example, the west queuing and the eastern cluster. Many Chinese tourists actually take a class which involves learning about queuing along with other things so that they are on the same page with others when they travel. I don't recommend going to a new country and assuming everyone is just as unique and independently minded as you. There is a thing called culture and it's not the same across the world lol..
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you need to substantiate your argument otherwise people downvote you.
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What the heck is this comment thread? Are you people tinfoil hat nutters?
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How do you know? Do you belong to both cultures?
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Seriously? How is it mean? How can you possibly take offence, and if you didn't, why are you taking offence on behalf of others when no one specific is being portrayed, and all of the comments from those of the portrayed nationalities are finding humour and things they can relate to, rather than taking offence? Not everything that isn't rainbows and sunshine needs to be seen as mean or offensive.
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The artist lives in Germany, where two cold meals a day are normal.
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Look up where the artist was born and where they live. Clues in the picture.
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Attention trolls: please stop calling this Beijing-born Chinese artist a racist, or that she is stereotyping her own country
I love her (accurate) take on things and I think it's so true that it actually makes it humourous. ..... I haven't read every comment but a lot of them seem to be 'defending' the west! Why?? These pics are just some general sweeping statements to make us smile .... Well it worked for me! Happy Tuesday 😉
Load More Replies... Just goes to show there are things to be learned from both (and other) cultures. Once we get further down our shared timeline, hopefully we can choose the best of all and further humankind.
Again, wish I could upvote this comment at least 100 times. (Hopefully, fingers crossed, but not holding my breath 😪)
Load More Replies... I feel like this should be titled differences in China and Germany rather than East and West. Both areas are culturally diverse enough that using one country as a metric isn't really fair.
I relate completely as a middle eastern living in the west.
Load More Replies... Yep. Acknowledging differences between cultures is the exact opposite of racist unless it's done with a disdainful or xenophobic undertone. It's so gross that it's become the norm to cry racism for any humor relating to or observations of CULTURAL variations. Hell, it is almost never coming from a racist place when people make jokes or discuss differences between actual races in today's day. 99.999% of what many people have tantrums about and call racist only shows their inability to process the literal definition of the term. It's basically always about their fragile egos being damaged due to a lifetime of privilege making them weak, narcissistic and simple enough to still do something so obviously embarrassing, wrong, dividing and...just f****n gross. It's regressive fragility masquerading as progressive. I can't imagine anyone is still so enslaved by their delusion as to believe this contemporary bastardized version of social consciousness and tolerance is progressive.
It took me 4 pictures to realize that this wasn't talking about the East and West coast of the U.S 🤦🏻♀️
well you DO live in a country that calls its indigenous sport tournament the "world series" so we're quite used to you guys thinking usa is the world ;-) /jk
Load More Replies... The art is neat, but most seem more like judgements than observations. Very interesting.
It seems to me that a lot of the negative reactions are to Yet Another BP Post That Lacks Subtlety. It's strange to me that the title of the series was painted is such broad strokes: Berlin vs. Beijing would have been more poetic and reflective of the observed differences, and it would also recognize that painting something like half of all humans vs the other almost half of all humans is probably too broad of a stroke. I also, personally, dislike this from an infographic perspective because a good graphic condenses complicated information while making it more accessible and the graphics... do the opposite? These observations, without cultural context, and presented as a full card each seem to be adding space and removing information, and I can tell from other comments that I wasn't the only one who found some of these counterintuitive or confusing.
It's quite odd, as this infographic could almost be used for the opposite East/West scenario if you were to swap countries. Japan would easily take the place of Germany, and the US would easily take the place of China in pretty much every one of these infographic situations.
well yes but Japan was colonised by America in the 1800s (Perry et al) so it's pretty much following western standards on most things except humility and manners, where it's more eastern.
Load More Replies... There's a lot to be said about a "we" mind set and "me" mind set. I remember how people took what they needed from the stores for their families to eat after the earthquake/tsunami. I wondered if in western culture if people would just raid everything for themselves. I don't operate on a "me" mentality and people will take advantage of your lack of selfishness. It's sad.
Blue vs. Red? I couldn’t find anywhere an explanation as to which was East and which is West. Being from neither country/region/nationality/compass point, I am not familiar enough with either culture to recognize them. A simple key statement would have been helpful.
I don't think any of them were designed to make either side seem preferable. For most of them, I personally liked the West becuase that's what I'm used to. It's just meant to show the contrast between different cultures.
Load More Replies... Most of these could just as easily be the difference between Northern and Southern Europe, so the title is wildly inaccurate.
She is a racist because she has claimed Chinese cultural habits as the same for all of Asia.......... The article is labeled wrong. It should be the EU and China not west and east
So, are you racist for saying all of the EU is one cultural block? Because all of the EU is not the same, so you would be incorrect to say that. You could ask for clarification rather than assuming the worst.
Load More Replies... It's also important to recognize generalities. For example, the west queuing and the eastern cluster. Many Chinese tourists actually take a class which involves learning about queuing along with other things so that they are on the same page with others when they travel. I don't recommend going to a new country and assuming everyone is just as unique and independently minded as you. There is a thing called culture and it's not the same across the world lol..
Load More Replies... you need to substantiate your argument otherwise people downvote you.
Load More Replies... What the heck is this comment thread? Are you people tinfoil hat nutters?
Load More Replies... How do you know? Do you belong to both cultures?
Load More Replies... Seriously? How is it mean? How can you possibly take offence, and if you didn't, why are you taking offence on behalf of others when no one specific is being portrayed, and all of the comments from those of the portrayed nationalities are finding humour and things they can relate to, rather than taking offence? Not everything that isn't rainbows and sunshine needs to be seen as mean or offensive.
Load More Replies... The artist lives in Germany, where two cold meals a day are normal.
Load More Replies... Look up where the artist was born and where they live. Clues in the picture.
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