Is Art A Good Thing?

There is an old saying, “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.” Effective Altruists, genuinely well-meaning people, whose goal is to do as much good as they can, seem not to notice the flaws in some of their methods. Robert Southan is a screenplay writer who recounts his encounters with some Effective Altruists in his essay “Is Art a Waste of Time?” He says that Effective Altruists generally do not consider art to be a worthy profession for they perceive it to be an occupation that has little potential to do good for others. However, they do not take into account the enormous emotional support that art has had for countless people. Music, in particular, is part of nearly all cultures and is instrumental in creating situations in

There appears to be many problems that are agued back and forth between different people. Controversy issues are debated on a number of occasions but one that can always be argued is the question of can graffiti be considered an art. The definition of art is “something that is created with imagination and skill” (Webster dictionary). When people argue graffiti is just a crime done they do not look at the definition of art and how graffiti falls under the definition. Graffiti should not be considered a crime but a form of art.

Fine arts are one of the first things that get cut when school budgets are getting tight. Administrators even question why we have a fine arts program if it’s not beneficial to the curriculum. You need fine arts to improve creativity and mindset for whatever you may want to do, and help kids see a way to have a place to belong and get in where they may feel left out or otherwise rejected. Research shows that low poverty areas that have fine arts programs keep kids occupied and out of trouble. Fine arts should be kept in schools because it keeps kids out of trouble, improved school results, and the outcome of fine arts involvement.

Many people have different perceptions of what art means and what types of creative skills and imagination defines true art. One type of art that truly demonstrates art is murals is a tool used to demonstrate feelings through culture, sociopolitical issues, and express goals of art. People use culture in their murals to define certain emotions and areas during certain periods of time that gives murals and artistic meaning. Sociopolitical issues help embody the mural as not just a painting but something that has true depth in meaning. Also, murals express goals of art that give the viewers a view of the artist point of expression. Furthermore, Murals give multiple views of sentimental value and diversity to create what defines true art.

The Effective Altruism organization promotes very unrealistic ways a person should live their life. When Rhys Southan asks Hilton in the essay “Is Art a Waste of Time?” what his thoughts were on art being used as a source to improve the world struck Hilton as bizarre that “’ The idea that someone’s book, film, painting, or dance could be their way to reduce this world’s suffering’” (435). This means that if Southan who has a love for writing scripts was also passionate about helping those less fortunate, he would have to find a new well-paying source of income. This could potentially guide him into a profession that he has no passion for and let’s be realistic who would stay in a job they do not enjoy just to give “10 percent” (435) of their

Non-adherence to ART may thus take various forms, such as not taking the medication at all, taking the medication at the wrong time, taking the wrong dose due to misunderstanding treatment directions, or prematurely terminating the medication without consulting the health provider (Miller, 1997). Other patterns of behaviour indicative of non-adherence include not filling prescriptions, self-adjusting the regimen to modulate side effects and toxicities, and incorrectly understanding the doctor’s instructions (Chesney, 2003).

As a young child, and later as a teenager, I could not find my rhythm, that imperceptible beat that seemed to rule social interactions and day to day activities. What I mean by this is that others always seemed to flow smoothly throughout their lives, swaying with the force of the pounding wind of daily life, spinning to the lilting tune that made each day unique as it floated through the air. Children went to school, then to daycare, then home. Each day was a song, different but yet almost the same- tracks from a single album by a single artist. For me, the song was a new album each and every day, a perpetual gyration of disparate artists. What I didn’t understand was that I did have a rhythm to sync to- my own. In the words of Fall Out Boy, “Time crawls on when you’re waiting for the song to start, so dance alone to the beat of your heart.” These words gave me the strength to live as myself, to live as my heart demanded of me, and to do so not without fear, but with courage.

There were many times where the overwhelming pressure to bring my family pride had taken a toll on my mentality, which resulted in me turning to music to cope with my struggles. Realizing that music had helped me in ways I’ve never even imagined inspired me to see what it could do for others, and how it can be beneficial to those who struggle in various ways. Shortly after this revelation, I began to take in interest in music therapy and its ability to help an immense number of people. If I could create music to help those in need, then I could live life contently

I’m still reading a bunch and my current book, Extra Lives, is essentially critical theory on video games as literature. This divide between what makes something ‘art’ is something I’m kinda big on, so it’s a fascinating read. There’s one thing that Tom Bissell says which struck me: that because video games must be, by nature, fun, they’re seen as being less artistic or literary than other mediums.

“The whole world is covered in graffiti, no one cares. It’s just part of an urban noise”.

Others argue Picasso’s famous quote, “good artist copy, great artists steal”; when an artist copies another artist, it’s apparent, but when an artist steals, that artist transforms a work into something that is their own. If an artist copies, you are able to sense the original artist in that work. Even if the artist were to paint it beautifully, we feel art from where it is originally derived.

People have drastically different opinions on the use of artistry in writing. Plato for one, believes that art is a terrible thing and should not exist because of its illusions. On the other hand, Patricia Smith uses it to, "create the desired impact or slam home a salient point." Smith did this by making up people and their stories and writing quotes from them as if they were real. Smith 's case is an example of why Plato was intent on the end of artistry. Some artists use qualities of writing meant for fiction in their nonfiction accounts. When they are discovered for breaking the rules of being a writer, they lose things like their jobs and credibility. Just like Patricia Smith, Bartolomé de Las Casas wrote in a way that is unethical

Francis Schaeffer wrote, “Being in the image of the Creator, we are called upon to have creativity” (Schaeffer 18). When we create art, then, we are manifesting the image of God and becoming more who we were meant to be.

Art is crucial to human evolution because it is both a medium of expression that allows humans to evolve and is also key evidence of human evolution. The development and evolution of the human conscious has a direct correlation to the art created from each time period and has allowed researchers to interpret it, using it as a gateway into early human life. Art acts as a window into the minds and lifestyles of our ancestors. It has influenced the development, evolution, and the process of natural selection through culture.

A lot of people think that art can only go as far as a class in school, but in reality there is art around everyone. Art can be a way of life for some people, and for others it is simply just something they pass every single day. What they do not realize is that art can have benefits in different aspects in their life, in children's lives, and even the world around them.