One benefit of studying Korean more-or-less full time over the past year has been the clarifying and/or opening up of such a new perspective to me, beyond what I understood about Korea, and East Asia generally, before. (see, e.g., post #261 "But Which Twin is the Elder?").
Here is a possible example of this. A Chinese native speaker in my Korean class sent me a set of paired images delineating differences between West and East and asked for comment. Simple pictures, simple headings, but not all have clear meanings. I think it's well done and thought provoking. The important thing is that this was produced by East Asians in East Asia, probably Chinese. It was found on a Chinese website.
Blue is Westerners. Red is Easterners:
나(자신), Myself: Westerners have higher self esteem (maybe excessive). Asians tend to be internally nervous and self-conscious.
문제 대처방식, Coping with Problems: 인간 관계, Connections Between People: I am not sure exactly how to interpret this. Asians have a wider network of acquaintances whom they can rely on for favors? Westerners have fewer people they can rely on? Like one of those ink blot tests, many things are possible to see here, too. Asians avoid problems rather than dealing with them as they should? Or is it that Asians smartly go around problems while we foolhardedly and obliviously plow on into them?
식당에서, At the Restaurant: Asians are louder at restaurants. Or, Asians have more fun at restaurants?
여해, Trip: Even before the rise of the digital- and now the smartphone-camera, this was the stereotype about Asians.
줄서기, Waiting in Line: Japanese do not do this, but Chinese do, and Koreans are somewhere in the middle. It is interesting that whoever made this set of images equates "the West" with Ordentlichkeit and respect for rules in public like lining up neatly. This means "The West" is actually Northwest Europe and its overseas extensions (like the USA). Southern Europeans don't form prim lines like this while waiting. (The "Italian queue").
파티, Party: The Blue party looks much more fun.
Anger: Western direct expression of emotions vs. Eastern "Saving Face". Westerners would view a fellow Westerner who acts like the Red character (hiding actual emotions and pretending to feel the opposite way) with suspicion and even contempt.
Weekend: Yes. This really hits home. I have known many Westerners in Korea and Asia who don't like going places among throngs of people all the time. Many complain and cannot handle it. We evolved in lower density environments. I am totally on the Blue side here. This was one of the hardest things to get used to for me in Korea.
Eating: I don't understand. Does it mean Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner? Does it mean three "courses" within a meal? Does it just mean general eating habits (Westerners eat twice as much cold food as hot)?
Boss: Right. Maybe not quite right. The Blue character should be slightly bigger.