Leo Tolstoy | Russian literature | short story | 1885 | morality story | kindness story |spirituality story
#VocabularyBuilding #GrammarPractice #ReadingComprehension #ListeningSkills #SpeakingPractice #WritingSkills #Pronunciation #LanguageProficiency #ESL #EFL #EnglishLearners #AdvancedEnglish #LanguageAcquisition #EnglishLiterature #languageimmersion
"What Men Live By" by Leo Tolstoy
"What Men Live By" (also translated as "What People Live By") is a short story by the renowned Russian author Leo Tolstoy, written in 1885. It is part of his collection "What Men Live By, and Other Tales," which includes "The Three Questions," "The Coffee-House of Surat," and "How Much Land Does a Man Need?" The story is referenced by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn in "Cancer Ward."
Simon, a kind and humble shoemaker, lives a modest life with his wife, Matryona, and their children in a peasant’s hut. Struggling to make ends meet, Simon saves a small amount of money to buy sheepskins for a new winter coat. He heads out to collect the five rubles and twenty kopeks owed to him by customers and borrows three roubles from his wife’s savings. However, he only manages to collect twenty kopeks and, feeling disheartened, spends it on vodka.
On his way home, Simon encounters a naked, sickly man leaning against a chapel. Despite initial fears, Simon helps the man, giving him his coat and boots, and takes him home. Matryona is initially angry but softens after hearing the man’s story. The man, named Michael, stays with Simon and works as his assistant, proving to be a valuable helper.
One winter day, a nobleman orders a pair of durable leather boots, threatening Simon with arrest if they fail. Michael, however, makes soft leather slippers instead. Soon, a messenger arrives to inform them of the nobleman’s death and requests slippers for his burial. Simon is amazed at Michael’s foresight.
Years later, a woman with two girls, one of whom is crippled, orders shoes from Simon. Michael smiles as he realizes the woman’s kindness in adopting the girls. After the woman leaves, Michael explains his story to Simon, revealing his true identity as an angel. He had been sent to take a woman's soul but disobeyed when she pleaded to stay alive for her children. God punished Michael by making him mortal and tasked him with finding the answers to three questions: What dwells in man? What is not given to man? What do men live by?
Michael learned the answers through his experiences with Simon and Matryona. He realized that love dwells in man, that man cannot know his own needs, and that men live not by caring for themselves but by love. Michael’s transformation and realization allowed him to return to heaven, singing praises to God.
Негізгі бет 🎧 🍃What men live by | Leo Tolstoy | Audiobooks with subtitles | Classic Literature | English reading
Пікірлер: 1