let's easternise the west

Westernization vs Modernization

Let us first start with the biggest misconception that I have ever come across since having read about the British raj in history textbooks.

What do these terms mean?

Westernization refers to the practice of adopting western cultures as a part of our livelihood. This means that we get influenced by the ways of the west (mostly America and other European countries) and alter our own cultural edifice to supposedly “fit in” with the “new world”.

Modernization refers to adoption of newer innovations and technology and to integrate them in daily lives in such a way as to make life easier and hassle free.

When and why did they become synonymous?

With the advent of the British who had managed to modernize before us, adopting their culture (westernization) started to directly corelate to modernization. It is time we break this association and I have a very strong feeling that we will.

It is not news that social media has connected us to all parts of the world and that the power of digital influence is at an all time high. We, especially in developing countries like India see contents from creators in other (mostly western) countries and feel like we are behind in some ways, feel less trendy and thereby proceed to become scads of wannabes. 

This is where Japan as a country fascinates me the most. They are one of the most advanced and modern countries in the world and yet they do not conform to western cultures. They do not associate knowing English as skill for modernization, they take pride in their own language and have been very successful. Now, India is a very diverse nation and it would be impossible to impose one language as the national language, but to create a faux English superiority has inevitably subdued many of our nation’s brilliant minds just because they couldn’t conform to the language restrictions. I believe it is not only time to be unafraid of our ethnic, societal and cultural identities but also embrace them to our advantage.

 

Developed vs developing 

Innovations are a daily occurrence. We switch out old parts of a system and reach new levels of sophistication. Sometimes advancements happen just so they can help us maintain our position like walking forward on a backward moving walkway at the airport.

 

Humans evolve because environments change. Environments change because humans change and so do their needs. What worked for us 200 years ago definitely does not work today and so change is inevitable. 

I believe developing nations like India have a huge potential in this facet against other developed countries. We are still in the “developing phase” which gives us plenty of room for integrating newer technologies that may last longer than those currently “modern” ones residing in developed nations.

The biggest example that comes to mind is that of the transportation sector. Most of the railway networks were built by the British and that technology is not really future proof. Countries like Japan already have an extensive system of the bullet trains which can reach a speed of 600 kmph. The investment was huge and they cannot just uproot all the infrastructure because a better technology is available in the market. India on the other hand has scope for investment in technologies like the hyperloop which can reach speeds of 1220 kmph. This makes India’s investment more future proof and efficient.

 

The west does not undergo westernization but I can surely see them undergoing easternization in the coming decades.