Need help - 纵向地看。。橫向地看

[Mukeli]

Came across this pattern in "A Kaleidoscope of China" and one of the examples provided is:

 

縱向地看，社會制度漸趨於複雜完備；而橫向地看，各國都有所不同。

纵向地看，社会制度渐趋于复杂完备；而横向地看，各国都有所不同。

 

I can't quite wrap my mind around this pattern. The best I've come up with for an English equivalent for 縱向地看 is "looking (at something) from the top" with "橫向地看" approximating "looking (at it) more closely/different angle/peeling back the layers."

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated, as well as additional examples on this pattern's use.

[Publius]

縱向地 means vertically, here means historically

橫向地 means horizontally, here means across the globe

They are just cliches when making a comparison.