In order for any work of art for example a film a novel a poem or a song to have merit it must be understandable to most people

Art, as per the Oxford dictionary, is the application or expression of human creative skills and imagination producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power-whether or not they are understandable to all. The statement linking the merit of the art work with their comprehensibility for multitude defies its very objective. However, for some art forms, understanding the meaning of the work is critical to admire their beauty or emotional appeal.

Firstly, the fundamental aim of the art is to provoke human feelings, imagination and intellect and not cognitive understanding. For example, the virtuoso of music ‘Beethoven’ never intended to convey a special meaning through his musical compositions, instead he employed melodies and harmonies aimed to have positive impact on the listener’s souls and emotions without testing their knowledge of music theory. Similarly, there are many Asian which surpass the language barriers and incite the grief, love and ecstasy in foreign listeners mainly because of the singer’s vocal range, tone subtle variations and melodious voice. Moreover, in poetry or paintings, the artist attempts to create a connection between the viewers and his/her inner emotions through his/her ‘magnum opus’ which is not always relatable to most of the people and hence cannot be easily understood. For example, not many can comprehend the agony and despair in Mirza Ghalib’s couplets or desperation and anxiety in Edward Munch’s Scream painting.

Moreover, nuances of certain art can only be understood by a select few. This is because one needs certain literary skills, background knowledge and intellectual ability to interpret and appreciate the underlying meanings or patterns and the complicated technique in an artwork to truly understand and appreciate it. In fact, this very requisite to understand a meritorious artwork sets it apart from an ordinary piece of work. For example, not many can grasp the Leonardo da Vinci’s work in its pristine form, yet it is full of merit. Or consider Maurits Escher’s mathematically inspired ‘tassellations’ and platonic solid sculptures whose true merit can only be admired by Mathematicians or people with knowledge of symmetry elements and operations. Additionally, in sculptures, the artist may intend to portray the local culture which requires, at least, some historical and cultural knowledge of the monument under observation for people to understand it.

However, art forms involving words or verbal expressions such as, poetry and novel must be understandable to the readers despite their objective or style. The readers need to follow through the arrangement of words to understand the plot of the novel or the concept of the poetry and thus evaluate their merit. Using obscure and disarranged words may render them meaningless. Yet, not everyone can understand the personifications, metaphors and idioms used by the authors to emotionally move the reader. Similarly, in films, the dialogues, phrases and expressions used must be grasped by the audience to comprehend the theme and the story. Still, the final objective of every artwork is to make people live through vicarious feelings and emotions rather than simply informing them

In conclusion, the fundamental objective of art is to incite human emotions and intellect which prompts the artist to employ complex styles, themes and techniques not comprehensible to everyone. Thus, the merit of any art cannot be linked upon people’s ability to understand it. Still, in certain artworks that depend upon the use of language such as novels, poems, etc., understanding the phrases and expressions used is equally crucial to evaluate their merit.