Some people think the government funding should not be used for supporting art and

culture, while others think supporting cultural activities may be beneficial for the population
and the culture. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. (tự viết)

In today’s world of advanced science and technology, we still greatly value our artists such as
musicians, painters and writers. What can art tell us about life that science and technology
cannot?
In the world where scientific and technological advances dominate, people working in the
field of arts such as musicians, painters and writers still gain a great deal of attention. This is
because arts can teach us certain things about life that we cannot learn from science and
technology.
Firstly, arts give us the opportunity to see things from a different perspective. In the
world of science and technology, we see things as the way they are; yet, in the world of arts, we
are allowed to use our imagination and creativity to see things the way we want. In a
researcher’s eyes, for example, a cat is just an animal with soft fur and four legs; however, a cat,
to a writer, could be a friend, a hero or a traditional symbol of a culture. This way of seeing
things helps us to gain deeper insights into the world we live in and teaches us to think from
different perspectives when encountering problems.
Another point about the benefits of arts is that while scientific and technological
developments bring benefits to our physical lives, arts instill religious and spiritual values into
each individual, which helps us to become a more well-rounded person. For instance, whenever
I felt down and depressed, I often listen to the song called You raise me up which always gives
me the feeling that I can do anything that I have a passion for as long as I put my heart into it. I
think we hardly ever have this feeling when we carry out a scientific research or a technological
project.
In conclusion, for the reasons mentioned above, I believe that in the world of arts we can
learn various things that are absent from the world of science and technology.

Many young people now know more about international pop and movie stars than famous
people in the history of their countries. What are the causes? Give solutions to increase the
number of people to know about famous people in history
Some people say that art (e.g. painting, music, poetry) can be made by everyone whereas
others believe that it can be only made by those with special abilities. Discuss both views and
give your opinion. (tự viết)

It is inevitable that traditional cultures will be lost as technology develops. Technology and
traditional cultures are incompatible. (tự viết)
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this view?
VIEW: DISAGREE
- incompatible = không tương thích = (of two things) so different in nature as to be incapable of
coexisting
BODY 1: Admittedly, there is some truth in the argument that some traditional cultures would
disappear as technology develops/ the enhancement of technology would result in the
disappearance of some traditional cultures. (On the one hand, the advances in technology that
have driven industrialisation in developed countries have certainly contributed to the
disappearance of traditional ways of life.)

 EX:

+ development of the Internet – people, especially the young generation – are exposed to
different types of modern music all around the world, say, pop and rap music. They seem to
hardly know anything about folk ones, which were presented by their ancestors.

+ Due to industrialisation and modernisation, more and more people migrate to the urban
centres to have more job opportunities and abandon their own culture. As a result, some
traditional skills such as embroidering or pottery are not passed on to the next generations.

+ Technological development also leads to globalisation which might cause cultural

assimilation. This is because some developing countries have to adopt culture from other
nations in order to integrate.

BODY 2: However, I believe that the compatibility between technology and traditional values
is indisputable and the technological developments can even make conventional cultures thrive.

- Technological development helps to increase people’s cultural awareness and raise people’s
awareness of preserving their own national identity. It is apparent that the evolution of personal
computers and the Internet make it easier than ever before for residents to access the valuable
information of their conventional features.

- Promote traditional values so that these traditions can be well-known and appreciated by
others. This can be exemplified by the very fact that Hanbok, Korean traditional costume, has
gained in popularity thanks to the spread of the mass media or through dramas broadcasted in
various online global channels such as Netflix or Youtube.

The technological advances seem to make significant contributions to the dissemination of

traditional features.