How Much Land Does a Man Need?

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So now Pahom had land of his own. He borrowed seed, and sowed it on the land he had bought. The harvest was a good one, and within a year he had managed to pay off his debts both to the lady and to his brother-in-law. So he became a landowner, ploughing and sowing his own land, making hay on his own land, cutting his own trees, and feeding his cattle on his own pasture. When he went out to plough his fields, or to look at his growing corn, or at his grass meadows, his heart would fill with joy. The grass that grew and the flowers that bloomed there, seemed to him unlike any that grew elsewhere. Formerly, when he had passed by that land, it had appeared the same as any other land, but now it seemed quite different. Pahóm took out his money and put it on the cap. Then he took off his outer coat, remaining in his sleeveless under coat. He unfastened his girdle and tied it tight below his stomach, put a little bag of bread into the breast of his coat, and tying a flask of water to his girdle, he drew up the tops of his boots, ​took the spade from his man, and stood ready to start. He considered for some moments which way he had better go—it was tempting everywhere. Pahóm's servant came running up and tried to raise him, but he saw that blood was flowing from his mouth. Pahóm was dead!

If I were to buy some freehold land, and have a homestead on it, it would be a different thing, altogether. Then it would all be nice and compact.'Why, we shall go to any spot you like, and stay there. You must start from that spot and make your round, taking a spade with you. Wherever you think necessary, make a mark. At every turning, dig a hole and pile up the turf; then afterwards we will go round with a plough from hole to hole. You may make as large a circuit as you please, but before the sun sets you must return to the place you started from. All the land you cover will be yours.' All one need do is to make friends with the chiefs. I gave away about one hundred roubles' worth of dressing-gowns and carpets, besides a case of tea, and I gave wine to those who would drink it; and I got the land for less than two cents an acre. And he showed Pahom the title-deeds, saying:

That night, Pahom dreams that the traveling peasant, dealer, and Bashkir chief each transform into the Devil, who then laughs at a dead body at his feet. Pahom discovers that he is the dead figure and wakes up, alarmed. He shrugs off the nightmare and awakes the Bashkirs, declaring that he is ready to start covering his land. An elder sister came to visit her younger sister in the country. The elder was married to a tradesman in town, the younger to a peasant in the village. As the sisters sat over their tea talking, the elder began to boast of the advantages of town life: saying how comfortably they lived there, how well they dressed, what fine clothes her children wore, what good things they ate and drank, and how she went to the theatre, promenades, and entertainments.

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So Pahom was well contented, and everything would have been right if the neighboring peasants would only not have trespassed on his corn- fields and meadows. He appealed to them most civilly, but they still went on: now the Communal herdsmen would let the village cows stray into his meadows; then horses from the night pasture would get among his corn. Pahom turned them out again and again, and forgave their owners, and for a long time he forbore from prosecuting any one. But at last he lost patience and complained to the District Court. He knew it was the peasants' want of land, and no evil intent on their part, that caused the trouble; but he thought: Having done this, Pahóm chose out a farm of forty acres, some of it wooded, and went to the lady to bargain for it. They came to an agreement, and he shook hands with her upon it, and paid her a deposit in advance. Then they went to town and signed the deeds; he paying half the price down, and undertaking to pay the remainder within two years.

Presently Pahóm heard that a neighbor of his was buying fifty acres, and that the lady had consented to accept one half in cash and to wait a year for the other half. Pahóm felt envious. Tolstoy’s short story – “How much land does a man need?”— is a religious-morality tale which can be interpreted in a variety of ways, but which seems primarily concerned with the destructive consequences of human ambition. The story is about a man named Pahom – a peasant farmer — who desires to acquire more land, acquires some land, but is not satisfied and needs to acquire more. Eventually he over-reaches, forfeits all his accumulated wealth and causes his own death. (*See below for a Summary of story). The message to take from the story may be as simple as a warning against biting off more than you can chew, or we could say simply that the story shows how human nature pushes us to want more and more. We are never content with our lives, no matter how well off we may be; and , while trying to improve our standard of living, we put ourselves in danger of ending up with nothing. Ecological aspect - In today’s world, a world of overpopulation, dwindling natural resources, and the increasingly destructive affect that human activity has on the environment, we can raise the question of how the drive to acquire more and more wealth by the many individual’s and groups of individual’s affects the natural environment of which we are all part. In other words, we can point out that nobody acts in a vacuum, isolated from natural world. What we do has significant effect on the quality of our environment (air, water, land). We use up the earth’s resources and add to the waste that accumulates in our lands and oceans. When our contemporary Pahoms work to accumulate more and more wealth, are the needs of the earth and environment respected? The women finished their tea, chatted a while about dress, and then cleared away the tea-things and lay down to sleep. All one need do is to make friends with the chiefs. I gave away about one hundred roubles' worth of dressing-gowns and carpets, besides a case of tea, and I gave wine to those who would drink it; and I got the land for less than twopence an acre [3]. And he showed Pahóm the title-deeds, saying:

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What pleases me best here,' answered Pahóm, 'is your land. Our land is crowded, and the soil is exhausted; but you have plenty of land and it is good land. I never saw the like of it.' That night Pakhom experiences a strange dream, in which the Bashkir elder, the passing merchant, and the traveling peasant each transform into the Devil, who then laughs at a dead and nearly-naked figure at his feet. Pakhom realizes that the dead figure is in fact himself. Upon waking, however, he brushes off the dream. He sets his eyes on the land waiting to be claimed, grabs his spade, and begins his walk. The younger sister was piqued, and in turn disparaged the life of a tradesman, and stood up for that of a peasant. As soon as Pahóm and his family arrived at their new abode, he applied for admission into the Commune of a large village. He stood treat to the Elders, and obtained the necessary documents. Five shares of Communal land were given him for his own and his sons' use: that is to say—125 acres (not all together, but in different fields) besides the use of the Communal pasture. Pahóm put up the buildings he needed, and bought cattle. Of the Communal land alone he had three times as much as at his former home, and the land was good corn-land. He was ten times better off than he had been. He had plenty of arable land and pasturage, and could keep as many head of cattle as he liked. You live in better style than we do, but though you often earn more than you need, you are very likely to lose all you have...our way is safer. Though a peasant's life is not a fat one, it is a long one. We shall never grow rich, but we shall always have enough to eat. The younger sister, p. 5

Well, what of that?' replied the younger. 'Of course our work is rough and coarse. But, on the other hand, it is sure; and we need not bow to any one. But you, in your towns, are surrounded by temptations; to-day all may be right, but to-morrow the Evil One may tempt your husband with cards, wine, or women, and all will go to ruin. Don't such things happen often enough?'

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Ah,' thought Pahóm, 'I have gone far enough in ​this direction, it is time to turn. Besides I am in a regular sweat, and very thirsty.' Our only trouble is that we haven’t land enough. If I had plenty of land, I shouldn’t fear the Devil himself! Pahom, p. 5 However, when peasants begin trespassing his land, Pahom fears for the condition of his property. He complains to the local courts, despite knowing of the peasants' good intentions. Like the soldier, Pahom levies ruthless fines on the peasants, who begin to resent Pahom; some even threaten to burn his homestead. Meanwhile, Pahom complains that he feels too cramped at his property, and a traveling peasant notifies him of a village past the Volga River, where families are immediately granted 25 acres of fertile land for free. The protagonist of the story is a peasant named Pahom, who overhears his wife and sister-in-law argue over the merits of town and peasant farm life. He thinks to himself "if I had plenty of land, I shouldn't fear the Devil himself!". Unbeknown to him, Satan is listening. Presently Pahom heard that a neighbor of his was buying fifty acres, and that the lady had consented to accept one half in cash and to wait a year for the other half. Pahom felt envious.