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Leo Tolstoy: Inception And Forrest Gump

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Art Leo Tolstoy challenges elite artistic circles through his work, “What is Art.” In it, Tolstoy argues that while many believe that great art is that which only a few “elite” are able to comprehend, truly great art is that which evokes great emotion and feeling in the masses of people. Those who believe that great art is only great because only few understand it are blaming the viewer for not understanding, when Tolstoy actually blames the artist. It is not the fault of the viewer that he or she does not see what the artist sees. Tolstoy’s argument is that a great piece of art is created when the artist can manage to have all viewers see and feel as he sees and feels through his work. Exploring this concept of great art through movies, two great movies stick out: Inception and Forrest Gump. Although there is a significant group of people that would agree that Inception is a great movie, according to Tolstoy’s definition of great art, it should not be classified as so because the movie explores concepts and themes that are not universally understood by the average person. Whereas a movie such as Forrest Gump would fit into Tolstoy’s definition of great art because …show more content…

The greatest works of art have always included books of the Bible, fairy tales, and folk songs that are appreciated and recognized as so by all (266). Tolstoy also points out that the proponents of such elite artwork blame the viewers for not understanding the greatness in it. It is their fault that they do not have the knowledge or intellect to grasp the complex ideas conveyed in the work. Tolstoy argues the opposite once again as he states, “So that, if art fails to move men, it cannot be said that this is due to the spectators’ or hearers’ lack of understanding…” (267). He is suggesting that it is the artist who is to blame for the disconnect in emotion and

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