The story, “How Much Land Does a Man Need?”, by Leo Tolstoy is a story about Americans taking advantage of the Indians. Although it is set in Russia, it is about the greed that many people had at the time and the outcome of that greed. The opening scene represents the Europeans coming over to America. During that time, the mid-1800’s, the Europeans were rich and their relatives in America were poor. The younger sister in the story represents the Americans and the older sister represents the Europeans. The poor Americans, like the younger sister in the story, did not mind having to work hard all the time. They enjoyed their freedom and security. Even though they were content, it wasn’t complete. In the story, Pahom agrees with his peasant wife but wishes they had more land to work with.
“Our only trouble is that we haven’t land enough. If I had plenty of land, I shouldn’t fear the Devil himself!” (p 212) The devil here is greed itself. It is here that we see the greed begin to manifest, as it did in Americans over a hundred years ago. The story goes on and we see Pahom becoming agitated the he has to pay fines all the time because of his animals wandering. This represents the American people having to pay fines, such as taxes and tariffs, to the government in the mid-1800’s. Pahom lives in a commune and some of the people have begun to buy their own tracts of land. He sees this and decides that it would be a good idea if he did the same thing. He was worried that if he didn...
Another reason they bought land was to give their children a better future so that he/she could do the same. The sons looked upon their father to inherit them with land, but how much can an average colonist afford if he had more than just one son. An example that Gross provides in his book is of a young man who looked upon his father to give him some land. That young man was Purchase Brown a seventeen year old boy, whose father Captain David brown “lived in a household crammed with thirteen people.”(Gross 83). Purchase had four younger brothers and Purchase could not “take over the family farm… before the youngest child came to age…” (Gross 84). This was a problem to all of Concords residents and as land became scarcer, men of Concord started looking west to the frontiers for more land. Another example that Gross describes in of the struggle of some residents of Concord, is a story of two couples named Lucy and Joseph Hosmer. They got married at a young age and Lucy lived her husband on “her in-laws land that was still owned by Joseph’s father.”(Gross 101). The couples worked hard to sustain a good family living. When the war approached in Concord Lucy Hosmer was scared that what if she loses her husband and he dies without “writing a will, then Lucy would struggle to make a living…”(Gross 103). Then Gross state how the
(p. 44); "Who came to you with the devil?" and ".perhaps another person in the village?" (p. 45). A few of his faults are that he judges too much by appearances, ".you look as such a good soul should" (p. 37); ".a claim so weighty cannot be argued by a farmer," (p. 99); and he uses people to question other people.
explained that, by being forced to sell their lands, they could not survive. They would be thrust upon a land where they did not know the terrain, the people that had already occupied it, or even where to find shelter and food. He explained that they could not be expected to just give up their land and way of life for the advancing of the white people.
Symbolism plays a vital role throughout Tom Walker’s tale. Set in the early to mid-18th century in the New England area, Irving uses the location’s landscape as a basis of symbolism throughout the story, as well as to represent the main character. The murky morass environment of the swamp in which Tom Walker meets the devil represents his soul which, like the swamp fog, is clouded and thick with greed. The swamp areas of the New England areas were also used as a stronghold by the Native Americans against the Europeans during the Indian battles. Ironically, this same area in the story is seen as the devil’s stronghold, which symbolizes the prejudice that was still prevalent in the townships during this period in American history....
The crops eventually fell and “the owners of the land came onto the land” (Steinbeck 31). The Oklahoma families are forced to leave the land that they lived on for generations. There isn’t any negotiating. It was either flee or die of ...
Brown begins the journey believing that his forefathers are innocent, good men, but the devil tells Brown that he has been, "…well acquainted with your family as with ever a one among the Puritans; and that’s no trifle to say" (Kelly, 192). Brown's forefathers become equated with the devil. The people of the town are also displaced as the devil. The devil tells Brown, "I have a very general acquaintance here in New England. The deacons of many a church have drunk the communion wince with me; the selectmen of divers towns make me their chairman; and a majority of the Great and General Court are firm supporters of my interest, The governor and I, too----But these are state secrets" (Kelly, 192-93).
The symbols that encompass the novel underscore the theme that the American Dream, corrupt and unjust, eventually concludes in anguish. Money, greed, and lust overtake everything in their lives to the point of nothing else being of importance. The characters in this novel lost themselves to a fruitless dream that eventually brought and end to the “holocaust” that embodied their lives (162).
The minister, Reverend Parris, is an excellent example of greed. Reverend Parris says, “Man don’t a minister deserve a house to live in” (Miller 1250). Reverend Parris is the minister of Salem and should be happy and satisfied with what he has. However, he is describing how he believes that because he is the minister, he should have a better house to live in. Reverend Parris also shows another example of greed in the play by saying, “I am paid little enough without I spend six pound on firewood” (Miller 1250). In this quote, the Reverend is complaining about how little he is paid for being the town minister. Again, he thinks that he should get the firewood without paying for it because of who he is. Reverend Par...
Servant Leadership, found in Chapter Ten of the text Leadership: Theory and Practice, is a paradoxical approach to leadership. It begins with the innate desire to serve first, and then lead through servant hood. Servant Leadership, originating in the early 1970s, is similar to the skills and styles approach, focusing on leadership from the leader’s viewpoint and his behavior under the leadership. Under this style of leadership, the leaders are considerate of the followers needs, empathizing with and having compassion for the followers. A servant leader feels a social responsibility to the less privileged and is concerned with inequality among the followers. Through servant leadership, a servant leader will attempt to correct these social injustices and by enabling and empowering the followers while helping the followers in developing valuable personal skills. Servant leaders are ethical, projecting strong moral behavior towards the followers, taking leadership paths that serve the greater good of an organization, the community and even society as a whole.
She is commenting on how Native Americans lived before they were moved. They had a good life, as she writes, will a great sense of community, friendship and prosperity. No one in the tribe was left behind, no matter if they were not good hunters or gatherers. As long as you had a tribe to look after you, you will be alright. However, each stanza this pleasantness is interrupted by the white man. Even though what the Native Americans stand for is beautiful, they are removed and they are only allotted what the imperialists will give them. Here is a stanza to understand these concepts, “To each head of household—so long as you remember your tribal words for/ village you will recollect that the grasses still grow and the rivers still flow. So/ long as you teach your children these words they will remember as well. This /we cannot allow. One hundred and sixty acres allotted” (Da’). As we see with this quote, Da’ is pointing out how the new Americans exiled the Native people not only from their land, but their righteous ways of living, and the precious land that allowed them to be
The bankers are kicking people off the land because money is no longer coming in, forcing farmers to take actions like this, “But where does it stop? Who can we shoot? I don’t aim to starve to death before I kill the man that’s starving me” (Steinbeck 49). The world is turning into a wasteland, forcing everyone into situations that they never thought they would be in, thus forcing decisions like shooting someone dead. The family that we follow throughout the book, the Joads, are like any other farming family. Large, hard-working, and straightforward. Unfortunately, they also suffer the same fate as any other farming family, kicked off their land and forced to move west, to California. On their way to California, they lose family members, deal with new hardships, and face an uncertain future. For example, on their way to California, they meet an old couple on the road. While conversing with them, the Joads show the California handbill to the couple, and the man says, “Why, that’s the one I seen. The very same one. You s’pose-maybe they got all eight hundred awready” (Steinbeck 189)? This line strengthens the fact that all of the farming families are moving west, since everyone at this point must have seen the handbill advertising work. Since there are so many people moving west, there won’t be enough room for everyone, forcing people to live in substandard
The first act of greed that can be easy spot is in Pap’s wishes to gain control over Huck’s money for his own use and benefit. Pap has only been in “town two days” and I has heard how Huck has become rich (143). “That’s why I come. You git me that money tomorrow—I want it” (Twain 143). The quote shows how little Pap care about Huck that the only reason he came back to him was because of greed in obtaining Huck money. Once Huck advice Pap that he did not have the money the “Next day he was drunk, and he went to Judge Thatcher’s and bullyragged him, and tried to make him give up the money; but he couldn’t, and then he swore he’d make the law force him” (Twain 143). Pap’s greed was immense that he was even willing to file a law suit to obtain Huck’s money.
Kate Chopin wrote the short story “The Storm” one of her most bold stories and did not even intention to publish it (Cutter 191). The two main characters in the story are Calixta and Alcee. They both used to be attracted to one another in previous years, but now they are both married to someone else. After Alcee arrives to Calixta’s house looking for shelter they are driven into a passionate moment. In the story “The Storm” the storm has a significant meaning; without it the affair of Calixta and Alcee performed would not have been as powerful as it was between them. “The Storm” has a great deal of symbolism throughout the story: the clouds, the use of color white, the storm relative to the affair, the after effects of the affair, Calixta, Bibi the son, and the husband Bobinot.
Kate Chopin's "The Storm", is a short story about a brief love affair that takes place during a storm that has separated Calixta with her husband and son. The title "The Storm" is an obvious reference to the storm outside, but more importantly to the love affair that takes place. The title refers to nature, which is symbolically used again and again in the story. Chopin uses words like "somber clouds", "threatening roar", and "sinister intentions" to describe the approaching storm. Later in the story those same words in reference to the storm outside, will also be represented symbolically to the storm brewing inside with the love affair. In the beginning of the story Bobinot and his son Bibi stay at a store to let the storm pass by. Calixta, the wife , is at home by herself doing some chores around the house. As the storm starts to approach, Alcee rides in and asks Calixta if he could come in until the storm passes. It starts to rain immediately after he arrives. It's important to know that Alcee and Calixta had past together which he brings up to her later in the story. It is also stated that she has never seen him alone. The storm starts to increase outside, reflecting the sexual tension inside. The storm's sinister intention appears when "The rain beat upon the shingled roof that threatened to break an entrance...". It seems that the storm knows what is going on between the two and is threatening to break in and ruin their chances. They move through out the house and end up in the bedroom "with its white, monumental bed, its closed shutters, looked dim and mysterious. The bed being white symbolizes purity. The two then make their way to the window to watch the storm outside when lightning strikes nearby, falling back into his arms. The storm in a sense seems to be forcing them together now. They then embrace each other in the peek of the storm where things really start to get stormy in the love affair. The two then start making out yahda, yahda, yahda. The thunder is now distant and passing away. The storm outside turns into a soft, lighter rain, being symbolic that the storm is ending.
The economic status of the main characters is poor, without hope of improving their condition, and at the mercy of a quasi-feudal system in North America during the late 1800's. Being a sharecropper, Ab and his family had to share half or two-thirds of the harvest with the landowner and out of their share pay for the necessities of life. As a result of this status, Ab and his family know from the start what the future will hold -- hard work for their landlord and mere survival for them.