The debate over whether art and cultural activities should obtain financial investment from government bodies or not is a complex issue. In this essay, I would analyze both sides of this argument before presenting my perspectives.
On the one hand, funding art and cultural activities is considered to be extravagant as social issues are significantly more pressing. To be specific, in this contemporary society, a boom in population has gradually led to overcrowding in numerous regions, which currently host populations far exceeding those from previous decades. Not only has this resulted in accommodation shortages for dwellers, forcing many to reside in slums, but it also can put strains on public services, including overloaded hospitals and shortage of schools. Therefore, governments should mitigate such a detrimental development by investing in infrastructure and public services, which can ensure the living standard and quality of their inhabitants, rather than pouring financial resources into art and cultural activities. For instance, developing countries, encompassing several ones in Africa, have consistently prioritized their residents’ quality of life in order to alleviate food scarcity as well as improve their economy.
On the other hand, art and cultural activities should be allocated a substantial national budget since these areas can yield tremendous benefits for their countries. First, art productions serve as a mean of disseminating the creativity and novelty of a nation, thus effectively augmenting the influx of tourists, particularly art appreciators, to their nation. Not only can this enhance national economic opulence through revenue sources from tourism, but it can also offer artists a more desirable income, thus encouraging them to create more masterpieces. Secondly, as cultural activities commonly encompass valuable cultures’ attributes of a country, allocating funding can significantly contribute to the conserving process, which can preserve such unique and diverse national values. In fact, Vietnamese governments consistently invest in numerous cultural activities, including Hoi An Lantern festival, in order to disseminate the distinct beauty of Viet Nam to the world and raise cultural awareness among the locals.
In conclusion, considering both viewpoints, I am more convinced that sponsoring art and cultural activities is critical due to its pivotal role in preserving and promoting the country’s values. Therefore, despite encountering difficulties in other fields, the government should allocate a portion of the national budget to avoid diminishing such unique values.