The passage suggests that Dostoyevsky's attitude toward the radical critics' view would be most softened if the radic...

shunhe on February 8, 2020

Hi @shafieiava,

Thanks for the question! Take a look at lines 26-27, where part of the radical critics’ view is explained as being that “art must serve a particular political view.” We’re also told that they believe that “the formal aspects of a work were of secondary importance as long as its goal was good and its purpose clear” (lines 31-32). This, to Dostoyevsky, is a “contradiction in terms” (line 33). Dostoyevsky thinks that the formal aspects of a work are also important; in other words, he thinks that the radical critics need to put more emphasis on the actual “art” part of the art instead of just the end goals. As we’re told, he thinks that only fully realized artistic works can fulfill their goals (lines 34-35). This is what (D) tells us. If the critics are recognizing the full significance of artistic merit when evaluating literary works, then that criticism of Dostoyevsky is taken away, and his attitude towards their view would likely be softened. Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.