Ivan the Fool Page #8

"Ivan the Fool" is a novella by Leo Tolstoy that examines the themes of wisdom, folly, and the nature of happiness. The story follows the life of Ivan, a simple and good-hearted peasant who is often regarded as foolish by those around him. Despite his lack of worldly wisdom, Ivan possesses a profound understanding of what truly matters in life—love, kindness, and contentment. Throughout the narrative, Tolstoy contrasts Ivan's humble perspective with the greed and pretentiousness of others, ultimately suggesting that genuine wisdom may reside in sincerity and simplicity rather than in societal conventions. Through a blend of humor and moral reflection, Tolstoy invites readers to reconsider their definitions of intelligence and success.

								

can buy everything you want, and you need labor no longer.”

But the fools would not accept his gold, nor listen to him. Thus the
old devil was obliged to go to sleep hungry.

Tidings of this condition of affairs soon reached the ears of Ivan. The
people went to him and said: “What shall we do? This nobleman appeared
among us; he is well dressed; he wishes to eat and drink of the best,
but is unwilling to work, and does not beg for food for Christ’s sake.
He only offers every one gold pieces. At first we gave him everything
he wanted, taking the gold pieces in exchange just as curiosities; but
now we have enough of them and refuse to accept any more from him. What
shall we do with him? he may die of hunger!”

Ivan heard all they had to say, and told them to employ him as a
shepherd, taking turns in doing so.

The old devil saw no other way out of the difficulty and was obliged to
submit.

It soon came the old devil’s turn to go to Ivan’s house. He went there
to dinner and found Ivan’s dumb sister preparing the meal. She was
often cheated by the lazy people, who while they did not work, yet ate
up all the gruel. But she learned to know the lazy people from the
condition of their hands. Those with great welts on their hands she
invited first to the table, and those having smooth white hands had to
take what was left.

The old devil took a seat at the table, but the dumb girl, taking his
hands, looked at them, and seeing them white and clean, and with long
nails, swore at him and put him from the table.

Ivan’s wife said to the old devil: “You must excuse my sister-in-law;
she will not allow any one to sit at the table whose hands have not
been hardened by toil, so you will have to wait until the dinner is
over and then you can have what is left. With it you must be
satisfied.”

The old devil was very much offended that he was made to eat with
“pigs,” as he expressed it, and complained to Ivan, saying: “The
foolish law you have in your kingdom, that all persons must work, is
surely the invention of fools. People who work for a living are not
always forced to labor with their hands. Do you think wise men labor
so?”

Ivan replied: “Well, what do fools know about it? We all work with our
hands.”

“And for that reason you are fools,” replied the devil. “I can teach
you how to use your brains, and you will find such labor more
beneficial.”

Ivan was surprised at hearing this, and said: “Well, it is perhaps not
without good reason that we are called fools.”

“It is not so easy to work with the brain,” the old devil said. “You
will not give me anything to eat because my hands have not the
appearance of being toil-hardened, but you must understand that it is
much harder to do brain-work, and sometimes the head feels like
bursting with the effort it is forced to make.”

“Then why do you not select some light work that you can perform with
your hands?” Ivan asked.

The devil said: “I torment myself with brain-work because I have pity
for you fools, for, if I did not torture myself, people like you would
remain fools for all eternity. I have exercised my brain a great deal
during my life, and now I am able to teach you.”

Ivan was greatly surprised and said: “Very well; teach us, so that when
our hands are tired we can use our heads to replace them.”

The devil promised to instruct the people, and Ivan announced the fact
throughout his kingdom.

The devil was willing to teach all those who came to him how to use the
head instead of the hands, so as to produce more with the former than
with the latter.

In Ivan’s kingdom there was a high tower, which was reached by a long,
narrow ladder leading up to the balcony, and Ivan told the old devil
that from the top of the tower every one could see him.

So the old devil went up to the balcony and addressed the people.

The fools came in great crowds to hear what the old devil had to say,
thinking that he really meant to tell them how to work with the head.
But the old devil only told them in words what to do, and did not give
them any practical instruction. He said that men working only with
their hands could not make a living. The fools did not understand what
he said to them and looked at him in amazement, and then departed for
their daily work.

The old devil addressed them for two days from the balcony, and at the
end of that time, feeling hungry, he asked the people to bring him some
bread. But they only laughed at him and told him if he could work
better with his head than with his hands he could also find bread for
himself. He addressed the people for yet another day, and they went to
hear him from curiosity, but soon left him to return to their work.

Ivan asked, “Well, did the nobleman work with his head?”

“Not yet,” they said; “so far he has only talked.”

One day, while the old devil was standing on the balcony, he became
weak, and, falling down, hurt his head against a pole.

Seeing this, one of the fools ran to Ivan’s wife and said, “The
gentleman has at last commenced to work with his head.”

She ran to the field to tell Ivan, who was much surprised, and said,
“Let us go and see him.”

He turned his horses’ heads in the direction of the tower, where the
old devil remained weak from hunger and was still suspended from the
pole, with his body swaying back and forth and his head striking the
lower part of the pole each time it came in contact with it. While Ivan
was looking, the old devil started down the steps head-first—as they
supposed, to count them.

“Well,” said Ivan, “he told the truth after all—that sometimes from
this kind of work the head bursts. This is far worse than welts on the
hands.”

The old devil fell to the ground head-foremost. Ivan approached him,
but at that instant the ground opened and the devil disappeared,
leaving only a hole to show where he had gone.

Ivan scratched his head and said: “See here; such nastiness! This is
yet another devil. He looks like the father of the little ones.”

Ivan still lives, and people flock to his kingdom. His brothers come to
him and he feeds them.

To every one who comes to him and says, “Give us food,” he replies:
“Very well; you are welcome. We have plenty of everything.”

There is only one unchangeable custom observed in Ivan’s kingdom: The
man with toil-hardened hands is always given a seat at the table, while
the possessor of soft white hands must be contented with what is left.
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