Somebody Else's Century: East and West in a Post-Western World Book

I came to this book on my search for understanding East and West with scholarly depth. My background reading in philosophy gave me tools to understand Patrick's work.

Patrick writes as an essay and not to give a conclusion.

He writes this from his background on living in Asia for 25 years. He focuses on China, India and Japan. I find myself going in the opposite direction in life with Patrick.

Patrick's Essays starts with his story in Japan with his friend from Boston and ends with an answer from Shiv, from Ahmedabad. He asks the question,

"What does it mean to be Modern?"

"Can Asia understand itself without referring to the West?"

Patrick combines history, an idea of progress, self, time to distinct Eastern ways. He writes that east possibility could refer to themselves to create their own identity in the last chapter from Japan.

I came across a few new scholars from Japan, China that I did not know. Patrick explained the concept of doubling. Doubling he explains as modern-self was something put on above the traditional self. Japanese businessmen might wear western attire. To wear his traditional attire is not considered modern.

A Great Essay to attempt to explore his initial questions.

I would recommend this book to someone who wants to understand West and East. It might be a mini-intro to the history of China, Japan and India

Deus Vult,
Gottfried