Dissimilarities between the Chinese and Western cultnres are vast. Aging significantly points to these differences. The great Chinese thinker Confucius expressed very definite thoughts about his own aging process. In many ways his words coutrast with the verses of the famous Western playwright, William Shakespeare. These two creative men had specific ideas about the stages of a man"s life. The question is: Where is it better to retire-in the East or in the West?