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In Anna Karenina (2012), one evening, Levin settled down after mowing crops along with a group of mowers, and Theodore met him:

Levin: How many mowers is it, Theodore?

Theodore: Forty-two, Master. In your father's time, it was work for two days for 30 men. Though he never picked up a scythe himself.

Levin: The men don't like me for it.

What does "for it" mean ?

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    Presumably 'for working alongside the farm workers' (when he's the landowner).
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Mar 24 at 8:54
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    Or possibly for being made to do the mowing, or for some unmentioned factor that has made the mowing harder lately. It's impossible to know from the excerpt, but presumably a knowledge of the family history and the habits of Russian agricultural workers would help. This isn't really an English language question, but one about literature.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Mar 24 at 12:55

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"It" always refers to something previously mentioned or immediately apparent.

"For", in this context, is used to introduce a reason. So, the speaker is saying the reason the men don't like him is what he previously said - the fact his father never picked up a scythe (ie he never did any work while others did). Quite why that means they don't like him, perhaps the wider context will tell you. Perhaps they thought his father was lazy and they are holding that against the son, or perhaps they don't like the son because he does work and they think he should not be involved.

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    But Levin says "They don't like me", not "they didn't like [my father}" - and Levin apparently has been working.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Mar 24 at 14:20
  • @KateBunting the sins of the father etc
    – Astralbee
    Commented Mar 24 at 15:05

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