“How Much Land Does a Man Need”

Leo Tolstoy

1. How much wealth does a person need?

2. How large a house does a person need?

3. How large a vehicle of transportation does a person need?

4. How powerful a military does a nation need?

5. How many nuclear warheads does a nation need?

6. How much wealth and power does a society need? At what point does it become inconsistent with a good life for the citizens?

8. How many automobiles, highways, freeways, etc, does the world need?

Purpose

What Tolstoy gives us is a didactic tale, a story meant to teach a moral or religious lesson. How greed and an excessive desire for

earthly wealth can destroy a person consequences of ignoring spiritual needs

and the state of one’s soul, in favor of acquiring more and more material wealth.

what can happen when humans become too ambitious and greedy

Purpose

Many interpretations and aspects to take into account when gathering purpose from a didactic tale▪ Must consider how greed can affect an

individual AND those around him/her▪ Role of humility and religion▪ Social aspect, Ecological aspect,

Economic aspect, Ethical aspect—gain multiple meanings and insight

Background

From the sixteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century, Russian peasants were bound by law to work land they could rent but not own.▪ Grew food meant to feed others▪ Cultivated crops that others would sell▪ Worked to exhaustion to make a profit for the

land-owner▪ Peasants could be bought and sold with the

land they worked

Background

Story takes place after the laws were changed to allow ordinary people to purchase land.

To those who had never owned it, land represented the ability to control one’s destiny.

Tolstoy uses land to explore the age-old question of how much is enough.▪ Significance of Russian author

Background

Russia - In terms of territory, it is the largest country in the world

Total area of 17,075,200 kilometers (6,592,735 square miles). Covers about one-eighth of the world's land surface.

Russian Revolution – example in Russian history of political turmoil regarding control Absolute power (totalitarianism of the

Tsar)

Tolstoy

1828-1910 Very famous Russian author Most famous works include

War and Peace - about Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812. Masterpiece for its graphic depiction of war, insights into Russia culture, and exploration into the meaning of life.

Anna Karenina - explores themes such as hypocrisy, faith, jealousy, fidelity, society, desire, etc. Shows pressures of Russian social norms, public eye upon a marriage of the upper class. “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”

Tolstoy

Lost his parents at a very young age – lifelong obsession with the inevitability of death

Came from a noble family During his childhood, 800 serfs lived on

the Tolstoy estate (Yasnaya Polyana) When he inherited the estate at age 19,

he tried to make a better life for them. Serfs – work the land for a lord/noble

land-owner

Tolstoy

Created his own religious faith that emphasized a natural existence, universal love, equality, and nonviolence.

Profound impact on important figures such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.

Still revered today as an author who sheds light on personal and societal problems – question the moral implications of how you live your life