"just as in the evolution of knowledge – that is, the forcing out and supplanting of mistaken and unnecessary knowledge by truer and more necessary knowledge – so the evolution of feelings takes place by means of art, replacing lower feelings, less kind and less needed for the good of humanity, by kinder feelings, more needed for that good. This is the purpose of art." I don't know for sure yet if I agree with Tolstoy, as I think it is enough for an artwork to create empathy to be a *good* artwork. But all of the *great* artworks have transformed me into a more unified whole. This *is* an evolution. ![[2026-01-29 Value]] [[Artistic Purpose]]