Monday, June 18, 2012

Why I wish I was born Asian



There are so many things I love about Asian culture, but before I start I must make a disclaimer. I don’t really have any sources; most of what I am saying comes from random psychology texts books I have read over the years. So forgive me if a lot of the things I say are wrong and please correct me. I also must point out by Asian, I mean oriental people, not just people who live in Asia

Here in western society we value individuality, independence, leadership and standing out from the crowd. One of the main general reasons I like about Asian culture is that it is collective. Asian people value the whole collective group before their own individual needs. I think societies and families do a lot better when other people’s needs are thought about as well. When you just think about yourself, you may flourish in life while others may struggle. When you think of the whole, the whole becomes stronger and together more is better than one

I am a very shy person. Being shy is not a trait that western society values. Western society values people that are outspoken and stand out from the crowd. I believe I read somewhere (I’ll try and find some sources if I can) that Asian cultures value shyness. In Western culture people who shy usually are the “weird” ones in the group, while in Asian culture people that are loud are the weird ones in the group. I love this way of thinking because for so long I always hated my shyness. When I read that other cultures value shyness I realized its okay to be shy, and now it’s a trait that I actually like about myself. Source: Patternsof shyness in East-Asian and European-heritage students


Now this last reason is basically just generalizing people into groups; basically stereotyping. Sorry if I offend anyone, but Asian girls have the best style. I have yet to see an Asian girl that doesn’t have perfect hair and doesn’t know how to dress.

Anyways, let me know if this was very offensive or not. I’d love to hear your feedback!

I'm basically the old man in the back
Source: http://www.brucebriscoe.com

-Fadia

2 comments:

  1. In Chinese culture, there is something called 'Filial piety'. It means the virtue of respect for one's parents and ancestors. I think most Asians have the tradition of taking care of their parents till they are gone. Some may even live with them after marriage. While in western culture it is common to have kids moving out of their parents house at the age of 18. This is one of the reason why Asians value family more. I think same thing could apply to Hispanics too.

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    1. It is okay for Asians to be shy. In fact there is a Chinese proverb called "The bird who sticks out its head gets shot" meaning nonconformity gets punished. It is not necessary a good thing as it depends on contexts.

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