28 pages • 56 minutes read
Leo TolstoyWhat Men Live By
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1885A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing is used throughout the story to hint at Michael’s true nature. Michael’s oddness is immediately apparent, and his oddities foreshadow his eventual reveal as a holy figure. After Simon finds him lying against the shrine (a holy place) and asks him how he got there, Michael replies that “God has punished [him]” (Part 2, paragraph 5). While Simon interprets this to be metaphorical, Michael means it literally, as God personally banished him from heaven and is responsible for his current condition. Michael is often described as looking upward, foreshadowing the reveal of his heavenly origins. His knowledge of the gentleman’s forthcoming death and the recognition in his eyes upon seeing the twin girls also imply a connection between Michael and forces of power and knowledge beyond human ability. The light that surrounds Michael when he smiles is similarly extraordinary and foreshadows the light he is bathed in at the end of the story upon his reascension to heaven.
Irony
After Simon and Matryona take Michael in, Matryona asks “We give; but why does nobody give us anything?” (Part 4, Paragraph 14). Her statement is ironic as it is through this act of giving to Michael that they are about to enter a period of prosperity. Michael gives them labor and dedication in recognition of the kindness and love they show him. This use of irony reinforces Tolstoy’s overarching message of the importance of caring for one another, as well as the story’s second truth—that men do not know what they need.
The episode in which Michael learns said truth is another example of irony within the story. The gentleman is sure enough of his survival to be making plans for the next year, and both Matryona and Simon remark on his liveliness, with Matryona saying that death could not touch such a man. As Michael knows, the gentleman shall not even survive the carriage ride home, proving through this irony that men do not know what they need.
Dichotomy
The conflict between selfishness and selflessness consumes both Simon and Matryona’s characters at the start of “What Men Live By.” Drawing contrasts between these two impulses informs not only their characters but also the nature of humanity within the narrative. Simon and Matryona go through nearly the same struggle upon seeing Michael, at first concerned over how helping him may burden them before recognizing that there is some higher good in helping those less fortunate, even when one is struggling. The presentation of this dichotomy allows for the effects of these respective actions on the psyche to be witnessed. Selfishness garners only an increase in distress, while kindness eases the burden. Using the tension between two contrasting ideas as the central theme of the story’s moral discourse allows a clear argument to be made.
Anagnorisis
The reveal of Michael’s angelic origins is an example of anagnorisis, a reveal of identity that recontextualizes all prior events and leads to the end of the story. Repeatedly informing the family that he now understands the truth about humanity, this in turn allows them and the reader to “understand” the true nature and meaning of the story’s action. Michael’s impossible precognition, his unabating despair, and his odd appearance at the shrine are all unexplained until the very end. When Michael transforms, each incident is at once given not only an explanation but a greater meaning to match the sudden elevation of the narrative. Each episode within the story portrays a greater truth about man, which becomes clear with Michael’s explanation of his identity and purpose. The usefulness of Michael’s anagnorisis is threefold: It explains the unexplained, adds meaning and insight, and neatly ends the tale.
Related Titles
By Leo Tolstoy
