Of the five conditions of the Sublime, according to Longinus, the most important condition is:

Correct option is C

Explanation:

According to Longinus, "A lofty cast of mind" is the most important condition for the Sublime.

Longinus outlines five conditions for achieving the Sublime, but he emphasizes that the lofty cast of mind is crucial because it allows the writer or speaker to rise above ordinary thought, capturing greatness and nobility in their expression.

This mindset enables the person to transcend simple or superficial ideas and evoke a sense of grandeur and awe in the audience. It provides the intellectual and emotional basis for the other conditions of the Sublime to emerge.

The lofty cast of mind reflects the mental and emotional state required for producing truly sublime writing or speaking — one where the speaker's or writer's thinking is elevated, and they can express universal truths or ideals that transcend the mundane aspects of everyday life.
​
Information Booster:

Longinus, in his work On the Sublime, outlined five key conditions for achieving sublime writing:

- Lofty cast of mind (the most important),
- Noble treatment of passions (appealing to emotions),
- Appropriateness of figures of speech,
- Majesty of the structure,
- A wide range of thoughts.

For Longinus, the sublime is achieved not just through technical mastery or stylistic choices, but more importantly through the intellectual depth and emotional power the writer or speaker brings to the work. A lofty mind goes beyond mere rhetoric, and it pursues the true essence of what is great and worthy of admiration.

While vigorous treatment of passions and majesty of structure are also important to evoke the sublime, they are seen as secondary. They stem from the loftiness of the mind. Without a lofty cast of mind, one cannot truly move or inspire the audience in the way that sublime writing aims to.

Longinus believed that the Sublime had the potential to elevate the soul of the audience, creating a sense of awe and admiration through grand and noble thoughts. This aligns with philosophical traditions that prioritize the elevation of human thought and spirit as a key measure of greatness.

Longinus' concept of the Sublime was highly influential in literary criticism, particularly during the Renaissance and Romantic periods. Writers and poets like Wordsworth, Shelley, and Keats drew on his ideas of the Sublime to achieve greatness in their poetry by cultivating a sense of transcendence and universal truth.