These bleak perceptions of the art world prompted Tolstoy to ask “ Is it true that art is so important that such sacrifices should be made in it’s name?” Tolstoy detected the influence of an idea that had fundamentally sanctioned these so called sacrifices, but that he believed could never really legitimize them. That idea is aestheticism.

At the beginning of this paper I had a different perspective than the one I will conclude with. Going in, I thought that I had agreed with Tolstoy. I thought that you could not feel emotion out of a photograph, and how was that art? I felt as though you could not truly consider yourself an artist if you stood there with camera in hand, focus and lighting just right and snapped a shot. I myself saw it as picture taking, but something changed my mind.

es expended “to satisfy the demands of art.” And, ticking off a list of related institutions and pursuits, he describes an art world we have come to know well: “In every large town enormous buildings are erected for museums, academies, conservatories, dramatic schools, and for performances and concerts. Hundreds of thousands of workmen—carpenters, masons, painters, joiners, paperhangers, tailor

Some topics in this essay:
Criterion Vol, Art Tolstoy, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, blue sweatshirt, art world, leo tolstoy,