What is the role of emotions in Tolstoy's definition of art?

• A. Emotions are central to art, as it communicates the artist's feelings to the audience.
• B. Emotions should be minimized in art.
• C. Art should rely solely on technical skill without emotional content.
• D. Emotions in art are incidental.

Answer: (A)

Emotions are central to Tolstoy’s idea of art because he defines art as the communication of feeling from the creator to the audience. A work earns the status of art when it successfully transmits the artist’s inner experience in a way that others can perceive and share that emotion. Technical skill matters to help convey that feeling, but it alone doesn’t make something art unless it carries genuine emotion to other people. This view opposes the idea that art is just about form or craft, or that emotion is secondary or incidental. So the best answer emphasizes that art’s purpose is to bridge inner feeling and external experience, making the audience feel the artist’s emotion.