What is the main purpose of the append() method in Python?

The append() method in Python is specifically designed to add an element to the end of a list. When you use this method, the item you specify will be placed after the last current element in the list, effectively increasing the size of the list by one. This functionality is crucial for dynamically updating lists as your program runs, especially when collecting data or constructing lists on the fly.

For example, if you start with an empty list and use append() multiple times to add items, those items will always be added at the end, maintaining the order in which they were added. This behavior distinguishes append() from methods such as insert(), which would allow you to specify the position where you want to add the element, or list methods that deal with sorting or removing elements.