Final answer:
Western political changes often led to new directions rather than catching up with Asian governments. While Islamic societies were more conservative, Western innovations during the Enlightenment period, driven by thinkers like Adam Smith, laid the groundwork for capitalism and advanced democratic values.
Step-by-step explanation:
Political changes in Western society have often been perceived as radical departures from traditional forms of governance and have consistently pushed societies in new directions. While many Asian societies, particularly Islamic ones, were relatively conservative and did not experience the same degree of transformation that specifically occurred in the Western world. The history of the Islamic societies is marked by their significant contributions to science and commerce, but these contributions did not lead to revolutions on the scale of the Scientific Revolution or the Industrial Revolution in the West. European colonialism, which was intimately connected to industrial, commercial, and military expansion, marked a substantial shift in the balance of power towards the West from the early modern period onwards.
Throughout history, interactions and borrowing of cultural and political practices were common across East Asia, for their own self-strengthening and system building, not necessarily indicating political subservience to Chinese values and institutions. This borrowing was a means to enhance the political and economic systems within different societies, rather than a one-sided imitation. Moreover, the Western world has shaped history through territorial expansions such as colonialism, with long-lasting impacts that have caused deep cultural trauma in societies and raised questions of power and culture.
In Western Europe, substantial political transformations occurred during the Enlightenment, leading to the establishment of the market economy or capitalism, with influential thinkers like Adam Smith setting the foundations for political economy. These shifts highlight how Western society has often been at the forefront of developing democratic values and instituting innovative government policies that reshape societal structures.