How Much Land Does a Man Need ?

HOW MUCH LAND DOES A MAN NEED?

As human, we have always desire to posses more than we have and more than what we have to benefit us. Leo Tolstoy in his Short story “How much land does a man need ?” delivers the message that the need of human being to achieve more and more it leads to death itself. Though it is true that one should be ambitious but not excessive greedy.

Leo Tolstoy starts his story with two women and their argument whose life is better? As they continue, the owner of the house Pahom joins them and agree with that life without posses is better, you have no fear of any devil who can steal something precious from your possession but, the real devil in story is greed. Because strongly  believes that owning land will solve all of his problems:

“If I had plenty of land, I shouldn’t fear the Devil himself!” The devil, overhearing this boast, decides to give Pahom his wish, seducing him with the extra land that Pahom thinks will give him security.”

Pahom seeks lands from different sources. He moves his family to a land in which he can obtain 125 acres. There he obtains 125 acres and is ten times better off than he was before, and he is very pleased.

Later, Pahom becomes dissatisfied and begins desiring better land. He almost clinches a deal in which he can obtain 1300 acres from a man who is in debt. Then he hears about more lush land. Through a traveling peasant from the land of the Bashkir’s, Pahom learns of lush land of the Bashkir. The peasant comes along and entices Pahom with a desire for the lush Bashkir land. Pahom becomes more selfish as the story progresses. He decides to travel to the Bashkir land. He finds that the land is lush and desirable.

Pahom stikes up a deal with the Bashkir’s. He can have all the land he can walk around in one day for a thousand rubles. Pahom agrees to the deal. He starts his day on top of a little hill. The deal is he has to make it back to the starting point by sundown. Pahom tries to encircle more land than he can get around in one day.

As the sun comes down, Pahom runs with all his remaining strength to the spot where he began. Reaching it, he sees the chief laughing and holding his sides; he remembers his dream and breathes his last breath. Pahom’s servant picks up the spade with which Pahom had been marking his land and digs a grave in which to bury him: “Six feet from his head to his heels was all he needed.”
(Sources taken from https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/summary-how-much-land-does-man-require-by-leo-342122)