How Much Land Does a Man Need? by Leo Tolstoy

Tolstoy's short story "How Much Land Does a Man Need?" presents several notable themes. First, there is social humiliation and fear of/preoccupation with foolery. One of the first observations that is made about the Bashkir elder is that he "seemed a fool," immediately demoting him from importance and emphasizing the importance of appearing cognizant. This theme appears later when Pakhom is afraid to stop because he feels the onlookers will call him an "idiot." His fear of being labelled an idiot (like a fool) propels him forth into death from exhaustion. Anxiety towards social humiliation, as the Bashkirs watch, leads to his demise-- once Pakhom hears the spectators cheers, he receives a burst of adrenaline, fueled by social acceptance in the cheers, and wins his bet, dying in the process. Tolstoy seems to be suggesting that adherence to social guidelines and desperation for social approval pose a problem, and that while Pakhom deems the elder to be a fool, he is hypocritical, for he is a fool himself for being deathly preoccupied with labeling. 

Another dominant, clear theme and message in this short story is that greed is a pernicious characteristic. Evidently, Tolstoy is suggesting that the protagonist’s avarice is a major component in his death sentence. He lusts for more land than he needs, more land than he can cover in a day, and pays the ultimate price. We are even given a blatant demonstration of this when Pakhom wonders if “I was too greedy.” This theme also plays into Tolstoy’s ongoing preoccupation with religious values. Greed is one of the traditionally Christian “Seven Deadly Sins,” thus Tolstoy’s condemnation of greed goes along with his encouragement towards religious values.

A third theme in this short story is the mastery of nature, and the inevitability of nature’s dominance. There are hints of appreciation for nature; the protagonist thiks the land around him to be “beautiful.” However, despite Pakhom literally trying to run circles around the beautiful land, nature runs circles around him. Pakhom sweats from the heat, and his feet are mutilated by the rough terrain. Also, the sun sets for Pakhom before he reaches the finish—at least at first. Nature beats him down, though he tries in vain to possess it. Also, the setting of the sun is ironically indicative of the dominance of the initially labelled “fool,” the elder of the Bashkirs. The sun sets for Pakhom on his side of the hill, signaling his impending doom, while the sun does not yet set where the Bashkirs reside. In a way, the sun represents the power of nature in the favor of the elder, also discrediting the narrator’s calling him a fool in the beginning.