112: Leo Tolstoy - "What is Art?"

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This episode is a discussion of my favorite essay by Tolstoy, the contents of which factored heavily into my book (The Ritual Madness of Rock & Roll) as one of my major influences on the topic of aesthetics. Tolstoy poses the problem of art, the reason why art must justify itself. Criticizing the existing conceptions of art's value, he puts forward his own theory as to art as communicative, then attacks what he considers to be the self-absorbed art of the upper class and the counterfeit art that has captured European culture. Eventually, Tolstoy comes to the conclusion that true art is aimed at the Christian vision of the unification of man. This is the conclusion of the second leg of season five.