Excerpt from a Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy

The 24th annual Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy was delivered by Kevin Spacey. In his speech, the actor appealed to Washington D.C. to continue funding the National Endowment of the Arts.

Here are all the word lists to support the reading of Grade 9 Unit 5's texts from SpringBoard's Common Core ELA series: As You Like It, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, Is Shakespeare still relevant, Shakespeare marathon, Iraq learns from Shakespeare, How Shakespeare Changed Everything, Kentucky inmates turned actors, Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy, Texting Makes U Stupid, give the Bard the heave-ho
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. significant
    important in effect or meaning
    Art and creativity is one of the most significant ways that humanity uses to fight back against, and to lift itself out of, the muck, and dirt, and the grime, and the horror, and the unfairness of political persecution, racist attacks, hatred, intolerance, and downright cruelty.
  2. esteem
    the condition of being honored
    In America, artists quite often contribute not only to the size of our nation but to our spirit, not only to our political beliefs but to our esteem, not only to our self-esteem but to our self-comprehension.
  3. propaganda
    information that is spread to promote some cause
    Art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.
  4. touchstone
    a basis for comparison
    For art establishes the basic human truth which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment.
  5. disdain
    look down on with contempt
    the nation that disdains the mission of art invites nothing to have to look backward with pride, and nothing to look forward with hope.
  6. accomplishment
    an ability that has been acquired by training
    I look forward to America which will steadily raise the standard of artistic accomplishments and large cultural opportunities for all of our citizens.
  7. preeminence
    high status importance owing to marked superiority
    I genuinely believe the United States's preeminence in the arts and its creative industries are one of the nation's most powerful natural resources.
  8. diminished
    made to seem smaller or less, especially in worth
    But if we don't act now--to encourage the members of Congress and the Senate to continue the work of the National Endowment of the Arts, we risk our cultural life to be diminished.
  9. obligation
    the social force that binds you to a course of action
    If you've been successful in your chosen path, then "sending the elevator back down" is your obligation.
  10. luxury
    something that is an indulgence rather than a necessity
    Are artistic endeavors luxury items? No, they are a necessity.
Created on Tue Sep 30 16:20:01 EDT 2014 (updated Tue Sep 30 18:22:32 EDT 2014)

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