What is the purpose of the 'catch' block in exception handling?

The 'catch' block serves a crucial role in exception handling by managing exceptions that arise during the execution of the code contained within the 'try' block. When a particular statement within the 'try' block throws an exception, control is passed to the 'catch' block, where the exception can be handled. This allows the program to recover from the error gracefully instead of terminating abruptly.

By utilizing the 'catch' block, developers can define responses to different exceptions, such as providing error messages, attempting corrective actions, or logging the error for further analysis. This mechanism promotes robustness in applications by ensuring that they can handle unexpected situations without crashing.

The other options do not accurately describe the primary utility of the 'catch' block. Storing normal flow of execution pertains to regular operational paths in the program rather than exception handling. Initializing variables is unrelated to exception management, as it deals with setting up the environment before executing code. While logging errors may be a part of handling exceptions, it is not the specific function of the 'catch' block itself but rather a possible action within it.