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  3. The recently increasing number of commercial activities in museums has c

The recently increasing number of commercial activities in museums has c

游客2023-11-25  11
问题         The recently increasing number of commercial activities in museums has caused widespread concern in China. People worry that this trend will tarnish the image of museums as respected cultural venues and also threaten the cultural relics and classic objects in museum collections. Others, however, disagree. From the following excerpts, you can find two journalists’ opinions on this trend.
        Write an article of NO LESS THAN 800 words, in which you should:
        1. summarize briefly the arguments on both sides;
        2. give your comment on this trend
Excerpt 1
        Zhu Changjun from news.163.com
        When the Nanjing Museum in Jiangsu Province was used as a venue for promoting a real estate project, it significantly altered the public’s perception of such institutions. Opening museums to commercial activities poses potential risks to the collections and also betrays the nature of museums as public property. Should museums distance themselves entirely from commerce? The answer is: no.
        Regulations issued by the Ministry of Culture encourage museums to engage in dissemination of scientific and cultural knowledge, development of cultural products, and provision of professional training on a for-profit basis. Arranging commercial activities in moderation to benefit museum operations is actually a common trend globally. Commercialization of museums is not necessarily a bad thing; the key is the degree to which museums should be open to business.
        In recent years, admission to more and more museums has become free, as these institutions have gained recognition as providers of public cultural goods and services. Concurrently, though, lack of revenue, which adversely affects museums’ short- and long-term operations, has become an increasingly prominent issue. In these circumstances, moderate commercialization can help to make up for funding shortages. Commercial operations, though, must be standardized, as preventing excessive commercialization from staining the reputation of museums and eroding their public nature is crucial.
Excerpt 2
        Xia Zhenbin from Guangzhou Daily
        Museums around the world are engaged in commercial activities. Regulations and relevant policies in China encourage the financing of protection and research of cultural relics through various channels and paid services. Museums are supposed to make profits by respecting basic principles and bottom lines.
        What principles can rein in museums’ commercial activities? Actually, a consensus already exists. Regarding safety, for example, commercial activities must pay full attention to the protection of cultural relics. Unfortunately, however, safety consciousness is often lacking in the minds of those who manage such events, which puts valuable objects in hazardous conditions. Commercial activities must accord with and serve the museums’ heritage protection and educational functions. These institutions are supposed to select business activities to host in a discerning way, so as not to associate themselves too closely with commercial organizations.
        It’s acceptable for museums to generate income to improve their operations, but rules exist that dictate what museums can and cannot do. State-owned museums, theoretically, need approval from administrative watchdogs in order to host commercial activities. In reality, however, this procedure is often neglected. And even if applications are submitted to supervisory bodies, the criteria used for assessment and who has the final say of approval remain ambiguous.
        As museums belong to the public, the aim of commercial operations should not be to feather the nest but to re-invest proceeds in improving and developing the institutions. Although museums’ business activities ought to be transparent to the general public, in many cases, commercial revenues are not publicly disclosed, and this creates circumstances that have the potential to facilitate corruption. In any case, commercialization is a general trend, and standardizing rather than trying to curb it would be prudent so that museums can gain funding to improve their operations, which is in the public interest.
选项
答案                                                                 Moderate Commercial Activities Are Blessings to Museums
        Museums, regarded as places to increase the sophistication of the public, are associated with collecting, preserving and displaying items of artistic, scientific and cultural significance. As museums get involved in commercial activities for profit purposes, there is concern that this trend may alter the public perception of museums as institutions of diffusing and advancing the knowledge of mankind. Moderate commercialization is believed by some to be a positive trend since it provides more funding for the operation of museums. There are others who are concerned about the protection of cultural heritage and the use of proceeds gained from such commercial activities. In my opinion, museums can benefit from standardized and supervised commercial activities.
        It is common that public-funded museums are running short of funding as most of them are free of charge and the cost of protecting and exhibiting art works becomes ever higher. Without doubt, governmental funding is not always sufficient for running a high-quality museum. Therefore, holding commercial activities on a profit basis has become a global trend, which relieves funding shortages and meanwhile guarantees satisfactory exhibition. Another obvious benefit is that such activities will bring more visitors to museums. It is self-evident that in order to maximize the impact of the activities, the organizer will take pains to reach as wide an audience as possible. As more and more people visit museums, museums will better fulfill its mission of disseminating knowledge and the overall quality of citizens will be improved.
        In short, it is feasible for museums to fully exploit the benefits of commercial activities and in the meantime avoid the potential drawbacks. The process of approving commercial activities should be standardized and the bottom line is that no commercial activities should adversely affect the operation of museums as institutions to make active contribution to the advancement of public quality.
解析         材料围绕“博物馆商业化”这一趋势给出两名记者的看法。
        选段一认为博物馆商业化并不一定是坏事（not necessarily a bad thing），关键在于其商业化的程度（degree）。同时也有规定允许博物馆举办商业活动（provision of professional training on a for-profit basis）。而且，近来越来越多的博物馆免费开放，缺少收益（lack of revenue）影响了其运作，因此适度的商业化（moderate commercialization）能够解决博物馆资金短缺（funding shortages）的问题。但前提是商业活动必须规范化（must be standardized）。
        选段二也认为适当商业化是大势所趋（a general trend）,同时指出了当前存在的问题。一是相关人员在安排商业活动时缺乏文物保护意识（safety consciousness）；二是活动审批流程复杂，标准不一（criteria used for.. remain ambiguous）；三是活动收益不透明（not publicly disclosed），有可能滋生腐败（facilitate corruption）。
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