Did Pokhom Deserve His Fate? Greed is an intense desire to take more than you need whether it be money, power, or any other item you could want. The desire for more is a part of human nature. However, there's always a point when you have enough, and greed is classified as one of the seven deadly sins. "How Much Land Does a Man Require" is a story written by Leo Tolstoy. In the story, a peasant farmer named Pokhom has a desire for more land. In his desire for more land, he unknowingly challenged the devil. Him being ignorant to the devil being involved, he was ultimately led to his demise. Pokhom did not deserve his fate because he never knew he challenged the devil, he never broke any of the rules, and he is extremely determined. In the story, …show more content…
People who break the rules can get into trouble, whether that is receiving warning or physical punishment. Like breaking the rules, Being greedy may also have consequences, and sometimes there are no repercussions for your actions, but in other cases the consequences are major. Similarly, in Pokhom's case, he was being greedy, and he ended up with a punishment. However, he never broke any rules doing so. In the story, he wanted to claim more land, so he walked in one continuous direction because the land kept getting better. There is nothing against doing that, as the agreement between Pokhom and the Bashkirs clearly stated that all the land he walked around would belong to him. Although he was being greedy he never broke any rules doing so, even before he came to the land of the Bashkirs. Back in the town, Pokhom used his ruined neighbor as a way to obtain more land for himself. He was being greedy in the sense that he put personal gain over morality, but there's nothing legally wrong with doing that. All the land he got for himself was acquired through legitimate means and honest work. In the process he never did anything wrong. Throughout the story, you see that Pokhom did not break any rules, but his punishment was death. He never hurt anyone or took anyone's life, and for someone who did not do anything wrong legally, Pokhom was given one of the worst punishments