Fish Tank

“If you show an American an image of a fish tank, the American will usually describe the biggest fish in the tank and what it’s doing. If you ask a Chinese person to describe a fish tank, the Chinese will usually describe the context in which the fish swim. Americans usually see individuals; Chinese and other Asians see contexts. What happens if collectivist societies, especially those in Asia, rise economically and come to rival the West? A new sort of global conversation develops. The opening ceremony in Beijing was a statement in that conversation. The most striking features were images of thousands of Chinese moving as one—drumming as one, dancing as one, sprinting on precise formations without stumbling or colliding. [It was] a high-tech vision of a harmonious society performed in the context of China’s miraculous growth.”

David Brooks, The New York Times