--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When was the last time an American…" description: "\"“When was the last time an American president found it worth his while to write a speech on the importance of art and literature? I cannot recall. And ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33f/viet-thanh-nguyen-5296_american-president_when-was-the-last-time-an-american-presi_116265.jpg" --- # When was the last time an American president found it… ![“When was the last time an American president found it worth his while to write a speech on the importance of art and literature? I cannot recall. And yet at Yan’an, Mao said that art and literature were crucial to revolution. Conversely, he warned, art and literature could also be tools of…” quote by Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33f/viet-thanh-nguyen-5296_american-president_when-was-the-last-time-an-american-presi_116265.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33f/viet-thanh-nguyen-5296_american-president_when-was-the-last-time-an-american-presi_116265.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33f/viet-thanh-nguyen-5296_american-president_when-was-the-last-time-an-american-presi_116265.jpg) > ““When was the last time an American president found it worth his while to write a speech on the importance of art and literature? I cannot recall. And yet at Yan’an, Mao said that art and literature were crucial to revolution. Conversely, he warned, art and literature could also be tools of domination. Art could not be separated from politics, and politics needed art in order to reach the people where they lived, through entertaining them.”” [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art and literature are inseparable from politics; they can inspire revolutionary change or become tools of domination, depending on who controls the narrative. **In simple terms:** Culture is both weapon and catalyst in politics. Key Takeaway Art shapes and is shaped by power. Themes art politics revolution propaganda culture Mood critical urgent Type political cultural When to use this quote - creating protest murals - designing political theater - analyzing media bias - educating about art in civic curricula Key Concepts cultural hegemony aesthetic politics Practical Applications - use art to mobilize communities - critically assess cultural messages Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities do artists have in political contexts? - How can art resist being weaponized? A Different Perspective Art can be co‑opted, losing its radical edge. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American president](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-president/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art And Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-and-literature/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Presidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presidents/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Growing up in a traditional environment, I was taught the importance of art, how it's connected to the soul, how it makes a human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-horse/growing-up-in-a-traditional-environment-i-was-taught-the-importance/) [Michael Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-horse/) > [The romance of the old West vanished so fast and so few ever did anything with it. Does it make you realize the importance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-gilpin/the-romance-of-the-old-west-vanished-so-fast-and-so-few-ever-did/) [Laura Gilpin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-gilpin/) > [“The same thing is true of the experience of art. Here the scholarly research pursued by the "science of art" is aware from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-georg-gadamer/the-same-thing-is-true-of-the-experience-of-art-here-the-scholarly/) [Hans-Georg Gadamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-georg-gadamer/) > [The importance of art is in the process of doing it, in the learning experience where the artist interacts with whatever is being made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-lichtenstein/the-importance-of-art-is-in-the-process-of-doing-it-in-the-learning/) [Roy Lichtenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-lichtenstein/) > [“The subjectivist approach to art simply fails to understand that the subjective experience of art in itself is meaningless, and that in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-w-adorno/the-subjectivist-approach-to-art-simply-fails-to-understand-that-the/) [Theodor W. Adorno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-w-adorno/) > [“Does this raise or lower, then, the everyday importance of art? Does something which exists on the edge have no true relevance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/does-this-raise-or-lower-then-the-everyday-importance-of-art-does/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [Mao said he was prepared to have millions of Chinese people perish in a nuclear war as long as China survived... I'm beginning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/mao-said-he-was-prepared-to-have-millions-of-chinese-people-perish-in/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Too much war, hatred and fear in the world. Desperately needed: More art, love and poetry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-lee/too-much-war-hatred-and-fear-in-the-world-desperately-needed-more-art/) [Melody Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-lee/) > [I've always been interested in art and making things, but I chose not to go to art school because I thought I needed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hillenburg/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-art-and-making-things-but-i-chose-not/) [Stephen Hillenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hillenburg/) > [“Mao Zedong himself would have realized that the Communist Party has become weak. “All reactionaries are paper tigers,” he said. And Mao said something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-g-chang/mao-zedong-himself-would-have-realized-that-the-communist-party-has/) [Gordon G. Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-g-chang/) > [Now, given the increasing importance of artificial intelligence, automation, machine learning, and other innovative technologies, we are evolving Accenture Digital to be even more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-nanterme/now-given-the-increasing-importance-of-artificial-intelligence/) [Pierre Nanterme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-nanterme/) > [“There are other noteworthy characteristics of this rock art style: Anthropomorphs without headdresses instead sport horns, or antennae, or a series of concentric circles.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-irvine/there-are-other-noteworthy-characteristics-of-this-rock-art-style/) [Amy Irvine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-irvine/) > [Believe in the importance of your art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodora-goss/believe-in-the-importance-of-your-art/) [Theodora Goss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodora-goss/) > [It is of the highest importance in the art of detection to be able to recognise out of a number of facts which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-is-of-the-highest-importance-in-the-art-of-detection-to-be-able-to/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Gradually, ... the aspect of science as knowledge is being thrust into the background by the aspect of science as the power of manipulating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/gradually-the-aspect-of-science-as-knowledge-is-being-thrust-into-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) ## More by Viet Thanh Nguyen > [“He had a Minnesotan’s admiration for resourcefulness in the face of hardship, bred by generations of people one very bad winter away from starvation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/he-had-a-minnesotan-s-admiration-for-resourcefulness-in-the-face-of/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“We don't succeed or fail because of fortune or luck. We succeed because we understand the way the world works and what we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/we-don-t-succeed-or-fail-because-of-fortune-or-luck-we-succeed/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“Innocence and guilt. These are cosmic issues. We’re all innocent on one level and guilty on another. Isn’t that what Original Sin is all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/innocence-and-guilt-these-are-cosmic-issues-we-re-all-innocent-on-one/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“After all, nothing was more American than wielding a gun and committing oneself to die for freedom and independence, unless it was wielding that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/after-all-nothing-was-more-american-than-wielding-a-gun-and/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“She wondered what, if anything, she knew about love. Not much, perhaps, but enough to know that what she would do for him now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/she-wondered-what-if-anything-she-knew-about-love-not-much-perhaps/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“One could choose between innocence and experience, but one could not have both.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/one-could-choose-between-innocence-and-experience-but-one-could-not/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“then, to present myself as just another immigrant, glad to be in the land where the pursuit of happiness was guaranteed in writing, which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/then-to-present-myself-as-just-another-immigrant-glad-to-be-in-the/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“He was more embarrassed and discreet about sex than about things I thought more difficult, like killing people, which pretty much defined the history…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/he-was-more-embarrassed-and-discreet-about-sex-than-about-things-i/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“Perhaps forgiveness is overrated,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/perhaps-forgiveness-is-overrated/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“While it is better to be loved than hated, it is also far better to be hated than ignored”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/while-it-is-better-to-be-loved-than-hated-it-is-also-far-better-to-be/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“Every full bottle of alcohol has a message in it, a surprise that one will not discover until one drinks it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/every-full-bottle-of-alcohol-has-a-message-in-it-a-surprise-that-one/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“We shared a passion for words, but I preferred the silence of writing while she loved to talk. She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/we-shared-a-passion-for-words-but-i-preferred-the-silence-of-writing/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“Are you going to be the kind of person who always pays the asking price?” my mother demanded. “Or the kind who fights to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/are-you-going-to-be-the-kind-of-person-who-always-pays-the-asking/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“Even if they found themselves in Heaven, our countrymen would find occasion to remark that it was not as warm as Hell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/even-if-they-found-themselves-in-heaven-our-countrymen-would-find/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) > [“he was a sincere man who believed in everything he said, even if it was a lie, which makes him not so different from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-thanh-nguyen/he-was-a-sincere-man-who-believed-in-everything-he-said-even-if-it/) [Viet Thanh Nguyen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) [Explore all 99 Viet Thanh Nguyen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-thanh-nguyen/) ## More American president quotes > [The American President resembles the commander of a ship at sea. He must have a helm to grasp, a course to steer, a port…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/the-american-president-resembles-the-commander-of-a-ship-at-sea-he/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [I happen to think that Hillary Clinton is a beacon of hope for younger girls, as was Barack Obama in other inspirational areas. We've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-meneses/i-happen-to-think-that-hillary-clinton-is-a-beacon-of-hope-for/) Alex Meneses > [The only thing we have to fear is fear itself-and possibly teh bogey man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-paulsen/the-only-thing-we-have-to-fear-is-fear-itself-and-possibly-teh-bogey/) [Pat Paulsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-paulsen/) > [The true sovereign is not the American president nor the English king, but the Lord of the Second Advent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-myung-moon/the-true-sovereign-is-not-the-american-president-nor-the-english-king/) [Sun Myung Moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-myung-moon/) > [Let's get real: would any American president seriously open up their borders unconditionally to Mexico as the U.K. has done to the whole of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/let-s-get-real-would-any-american-president-seriously-open-up-their/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [It was interesting watching the Afghanistan war review deliberations, this three-month process where Barack Obama did the most thorough foreign policy review ever by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hastings/it-was-interesting-watching-the-afghanistan-war-review-deliberations/) [Michael Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hastings/) > [To give credit to Lincoln for moral progression seems beyond the facts and unnecessary for our appreciation of this arguably greatest of all American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-kaplan/to-give-credit-to-lincoln-for-moral-progression-seems-beyond-the/) [Fred Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-kaplan/) > [In fact, American presidents never apologize for what America does in war, because in the American mind, all its wars are defensive, always fought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-macdonald/in-fact-american-presidents-never-apologize-for-what-america-does-in/) [Neil Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-macdonald/) > [President George W. Bush is the first American president to call openly for two-states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-h-hamilton/president-george-w-bush-is-the-first-american-president-to-call/) [Lee H. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-h-hamilton/) > [On the contrary, I tried on numerous occasions to convince the American president not to go to war. I did what was within my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvio-berlusconi/on-the-contrary-i-tried-on-numerous-occasions-to-convince-the/) [Silvio Berlusconi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvio-berlusconi/) > [I have never been more proud of the United States than I am this year. We have elected an African-American president. We have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-stockett/i-have-never-been-more-proud-of-the-united-states-than-i-am-this-year/) [Kathryn Stockett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-stockett/) > [I feel like I've always had two selves - the part of me that makes films and the part of me that's political, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-polley/i-feel-like-i-ve-always-had-two-selves-the-part-of-me-that-makes/) [Sarah Polley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-polley/) > [We went into Iraq because Saddam Hussein refused to account for his weapons of mass destruction, consistently violated UN resolutions and in a post-9/11…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-went-into-iraq-because-saddam-hussein-refused-to-account-for-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Intelligence has been commoner among American Presidents than high character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-louis-mencken/intelligence-has-been-commoner-among-american-presidents-than-high/) [Henry Louis Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-louis-mencken/) > [For an American president to be aiding America's enemy in developing nuclear weapons technology is unprecedented, absolutely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-cheney/for-an-american-president-to-be-aiding-america-s-enemy-in-developing/) [Liz Cheney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-cheney/) [Browse all 224 American president quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-president/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When was the last time an American president found it worth his while to write a speech on the importance of art and literature? 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