Western philosophy takes all subjects and puts them in their most general and broadest aspect, questioning everything about it and its existence ("Philosophy").
After the father of Western philosophy, Thales, came Socrates, another legendary philosopher. Socrates passed his knowledge onto Plato, who opened an Academy for philosophy and was responsible for teaching the great philosopher Aristotle. All three of these men are accountable for many of the philosophies that are still held today, such as Plato's Cave Theory, which shows how ignorance can control oneself for the worse. Plato's philosophy of the Divided Line was groundbreaking and led to such theories as Aristotle's philosophy of form and matter, which attempts to explain the reasoning of why things are what they are, for example, why a chair is called a chair and what the chair is made up of (Stumpf). The ideas that these men were coming up with were unprecedented.
In conclusion, Western philosophy sets itself apart from all other philosophies because it has veered away from using myths and gods as explanations for all things that can be questioned, thanks impart to Thales. Because of this, under the ways of Western philosophy there are no conclusive answers for most questions, just more questions. Though it provides for wonderful mental exercise, Western philosophy falls short as an investigation of existence ("Philosophy").
II. Eastern Philosophy - Taoism.
An example of an Eastern philosophy is Taoism, a Chinese philosophical system. Under Taoism, the followers of the system are taught answers as to why things are the way they are and they abide by and believe in those answers. Taoism is based on the belief that Tao is the eternal reality and source of all existence. The goal of each follower's life is to avoid earthly things and to live in harmony with the Tao and with nature in hopes of achieving immortality. Under Taoism, everything is basically one despite physical differences, which gives things a different appearance ("Philosophy").