Free Essay Example. Prose Fiction 'How Much Land Does a Man Need?'

The fiction begins by presenting a conversation between two sisters, a rich elder sister who visits her younger sister, who is a peasant in the village. The elder sister is more engrossed in city life that she brags about it while mocking the miserable village life in which her sister lives. However, the younger sister is more defensive of her village life by telling her elder sister that she could lose her wealth in the city. She also says her sister that money in the town could make her engage in dangerous activities like drinking and gambling. However, Pahom, who is the younger sister's husband and a peasant, privately listens to the arguments between the sisters. This makes him meditate on whatever he needs and wants. This paper shall focus on examining the contrasts between what the protagonist (Pahom) required and what he wanted as well as how the ending demonstrates the characteristics of a parable. Again the paper shall also delve into understanding the various elements of irony that are shown in this short story as well as exploring the essential elements of a short story, including plot, setting, characterization, conflict, climax, and resolution that have been utilized in work.

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Contrasts Between What The Protagonist (Pahom) Needed And What He Wanted.

To begin with, Pahom starts by appreciating that his lifestyle keeps him engaged, thus free from temptation. However, he longs to have more land, for he believes that through the acquisition of more land, he would not even fear the Devil (Tolstoy et al., 10). Interestingly, the Devil hears Pahom's thoughts from the house and resolves to tempt him with the land. Pahom and his wife needed a life devoid of temptations and full of security where their wealth could not be lost. However, he wants to acquire more land that would make him fearless of the Devil. However, when the Devil offers to give him the land he had longed to have, he does not experience the peace that he needed in the village.

For instance, when the Devil offers to give the peasants land, he tempts them to engage in an argument, a situation that makes them fail to agree on the price; thus, each peasant resorts to individual rather than collective purchase. Pahom and the wife save enough money to buy a 40-acre farm, which he had always wanted. Pahom feels more relieved and excited since he had never owned any land before. However, it is noteworthy that although he had not held any land previously, he had experienced a peaceful life (Tolstoy et al., 12). The acquisition of new land causes him trouble as he gets into further problems with the neighbors who did not possess much land for themselves. He permits them to graze on his land constantly. Pahom complains to the District Court after allowing them to feed enough.

It is observed that the land that Pahom had wanted causes him a series of trouble with the neighbors. For instance, the neighbors are punished with fines, after which they publicly resent to Pahom. Some of the neighbors resort to cutting down the trees in Pahom's parcel of land. However, it is noteworthy that Pahom's wants increase when he resorts to increasing his landholdings upon learning that the neighbors were moving away.

Pahom's wealth continues to increase when he gets appointed as the village elder in a new village. In his new position, he obtains 125 acres, which makes him one of the wealthiest people within the new village. Ironically, upon the acquisition of the land that he had wanted, he realizes that the land was not good enough to permit him to grow wheat steadily. His insatiable wants are observed when again requires a virgin land that or unfarmed land; thus, he scrambles each passing year to have a freehold farm. As such, it can be observed that Pahom had only needed to have a land of his own, but upon getting the land, his wants continue to increase each passing day. He again purchases some virgin land from a nomadic Turkic in Eastern Russia.

Pahom is again permitted to have all the land that he might like. Interestingly the Chief informs him that he could obtain as much land as he could cover on foot in any given day, i.e., from sunrise to sunset. However, if he walks and fails to return to the first place, he would lose his money. Pahom is more delighted to get more land than he had acquired ever before. He had needed a parcel of land for himself, but it is evident that the more he gets the land, the more his wants increase (Tolstoy et al., 8). In the final section of the story, it is observed that Pahom dies from exhaustion after covering too much land.

Characteristics of a Parable from the Story

The parables often contain several features. For instance, they could be adopted as the story ends to function as the story punchline. As the story comes to an end, the author uses the dream as a parable to warn Pahom of the imminent danger. However, he ignores such warning, thus faces death ultimately.

Elements of Irony

Irony relates to the disparity in the intention and results, i.e., a condition where an action yield results that are contrary to expectations. Irony has been thoroughly employed in the story. For instance, Pahom intends to have more fertile land as a sign of wealth and also so that he may carry out farming. Contrary to the expectations, he dies in the process of acquiring more land. Several other instances of irony have been employed in the story.

Elements of Irony as Demonstrated In This Short Story

There are five crucial elements of a short story, namely; the characters, setting, plot conflict, and resolution. The story, 'How Much Land Does a Man Need?' just like any other story, contains the five sections of a short story.

Plot

The plot relates to the series of occurrences/ events as well as characters that relate to the central conflict of the story. The story contains nine parts, with each section being conceptually interconnected with the other. For instance, the story begins with Pahom appreciating that his lifestyle keeps him engaged, thus free from temptation. However, he longs to have more land, for he believes that through the acquisition of more land, he would not even fear the Devil.

Interestingly, the Devil hears Pahom's thoughts from the house and resolves to tempt him with the land. It is evident that Pahom and his wife had needed a life devoid of temptations and full of security where their wealth could not be lost. However, he wants to acquire more land that would make him fearless of the Devil. However, when the Devil offers to give him the land he had longed to have, he does not experience the peace that he needed in the village.

The story reaches a climax at the point when Pahom and the Chief make the land deals. At such an instance, Pahom is engrossed in an imagination of the extent of farming the he would engage in especially when the land is his. Most interestingly at this climax is that Pahom dreams that the Chief is seated outside in his tent, laughing. Suddenly the Chief becomes the dealer who had informed him about the Bashkir land, then later becomes the peasant who had implored in him to go beyond the Volga. In his dreams, the peasant suddenly turns into Devil, who is 'chuckling.' Before, the Devil is a dead man whom he learns is himself. Pahom wakes horrified but dismisses the dream and hurries to measure his land. This portion demonstrates the climax of the story.

The resolution for this story is the point when Pahom feels exhausted and in pain as he makes his way back to the Bashkirs. At this point, he is worried that the sun is already setting and continues to regret why he had marked off too much land. He is forced to rush back in time, but he cannot breathe. At this point, the Chief is laughing, and he recalls the dream he had. The Chief continues to praise him while he collapses. Subsequently, Bashkirs and his servants realize that he is died from exhaustion after covering too much land. At last, the narrator comments that the six feet are all that land that Pahom needed to be buried.

Setting

The setting of a story relates to the time and place in which the story happens. As such, authors often employ the use of buildings, scenery, weather, and seasons to demonstrate a strong sense of setting. For instance, this story is set somewhere in Russia since the author notes that the Bashkirs were some nomadic tribes inhabiting the Eastern parts of Russia.

Characterization

Characterization relates to outlining the attributes of animals and sometimes persons who play a central part in the action of a story. In this story, for instance, various characters possess different characteristics and qualities. For example, Pahom is observed to be encountering the risk of upward mobility. He envies his current condition of poverty. On the other hand, Tolstoy illustrates how competitive systems of the economy could perpetrate unequal dynamics of power as well as breed rivalry among various people. There are many more characters in the short story who have been included to communicate diverse thematic concerns by the author.

Conflict

Any story must always contain the struggle between two things or people within a story. As such, the main character is often on the other side of the central conflict. In the story, the conflict can be witnessed when Pahom struggles to obtain land in the new commune, among some other cases.

Climax

The climax of the story is attained at the point when Pahom and the Chief make the land deals. At such an instance, Pahom is engrossed in an imagination of the extent of farming the he would engage in especially when the land is his. Most interestingly at this climax is that Pahom dreams that the Chief is seated outside in his tent, laughing. Suddenly the Chief becomes the dealer who had informed him about the Bashkir land, then later becomes the peasant who had implored in him to go beyond the Volga. In his dreams, the peasant suddenly turns into Devil, who is 'chuckling.' Before, the Devil is a dead man whom he learns is himself. Pahom wakes horrified but dismisses the dream and hurries to measure his land. This portion demonstrates the climax of the story.

Resolution

The resolution for this story is the point when Pahom feels exhausted and in pain as he makes his way back to the Bashkirs. At this point, he is worried that the sun is already setting and continues to regret why he had marked off too much land. He is forced to rush back in time, but he cannot breathe. At this point, the Chief is laughing, and he recalls the dream he had. The Chief continues to praise him while he collapses. Subsequently, Bashkirs and his servants realize that he is died from exhaustion after covering too much land. At last, the narrator comments that the six feet are all that land that Pahom needed to be buried.

Work Cited

Tolstoy, Leo, Nathan Haskell Dole, and Louise and Aylmer Maude. How Much Land Does a Man Need? And Other Stories. Digireads. Com Publishing, 2012.