Composition and inheritance are two important concepts in object-oriented programming. In JavaScript, there is a difference between the way these concepts are used. In functional programming, composition is favored over inheritance.
Functional programming is a programming paradigm that favors the use of functions. Functions are considered first-class citizens in functional programming. This means that they can be passed as arguments to other functions, and they can return other functions.
Inheritance is a way of creating new classes from existing classes. The new class inherits the properties and methods of the existing class. Inheritance is often used in object-oriented programming.
Composition is a way of combining objects. The resulting object has the properties and methods of the composed objects. Composition is often used in functional programming.
Functional programming favors composition over inheritance for a number of reasons.
Inheritance is a static way of creating new classes. The new class can only inherit from one existing class. This can be limiting.
Composition is a more flexible way of creating new objects. The composed object can have properties and methods from multiple other objects. This makes composition more powerful than inheritance.
Inheritance can be difficult to understand. The relationship between classes can be complex. This can make code that uses inheritance hard to maintain.
Composition is easier to understand. The relationship between objects is more direct. This makes code that uses composition easier to maintain.
Inheritance can be difficult to change. If the relationship between classes is complex, changing the inheritance hierarchy can be difficult. This can lead to code that is hard to change.
Composition is easier to change. The relationship between objects is more direct. This makes code that uses composition easier to change.
Composition is a more flexible and easier to understand than inheritance. It is also easier to change. For these reasons, composition is favored over inheritance in functional programming.