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A mass of humanity struggles in the Siberian winter to perform thankless construction tasks with no heed for the needs of the individual. Indeed, we have seen other horrors that would match it or even exceed it. Alexander Solzhenitsyn is a masterful story teller. As its title suggests, "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" covers a twenty four hour period within one of the prisons of the Soviet Gulag Archipelago. The tragedy is that this story was simply so real. Today, we are more aware.
The individual is ground down even to the point where death seems to be a release.Yet for all the obvious truth that sits within this short novel, I feel that time has diminished its impact. Just because other evils have occurred does not mean that the evils of the Gulag Archipelago can be swept aside. Such is modern history.However, even though the great waves of history have moved on, there remains something haunting about "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich". In the 21st century we are very well aware of the horrors of the Soviet state and there are few people who regret its passing. I could, of course, name many more examples.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn writes of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov and his struggles within a day from sunrise to lights out.By most respects, this is harrowing story of man's inhumanity to man. Here, I am thinking of the Chinese Cultural revolution, the killing fields of Cambodia and the genocide in Rwanda. At that time, the world was just beginning to understand the inherent corruption and evil of the Soviet state. Warders are relentless. When the book was first published in 1959, I suspect that it would have had more impact.
The hook is in this fish's mouth. Soon, I will either buy another copy or check it out at the library. Yes, this wonderful book of which I had only read two chapters was accidentally left behind at the MSP airport. Never have I been so disappointed at not being able to continue with what appeared to be a marvelously written book based on the truth and suffering experienced in the life of the author.
The book is relatively easy reading in the sense of the language, but there's a lot to be learned from it. As a note, Willett's translation is from the full text, and was authorized by the book's autho Solzhenitsyn.
There were probably half a dozen over the course of the book, certainly not extremely frequently. Apparently, many other translations were made from the edited version that was first published in 1962 in a Soviet journal, and so are a bit more whitewashed by comparison.One note, as might not be surprising in a prison population, there are several "mild profanities," mainly sh**.
This is the fictional (but based on reality) account of one day in the life of a prisoner in Stalin's forced work camps. We learn about the way the work camps were set up, the frivilous reasons many were confined, the effects on families, interactions between prisoners, bribes, the sense of futility, and the, at times, mob mentality that can develop among prisoners when they are punished for the actions of one.
Given the setting and the purpose of the book, I wasn't personally offended, and I'm rather strict with language.I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who hasn't read it, with the brief warning above about language. While only 170 pages, it is indeed quite powerful, as you might guess from the fact that it won the Nobel Prize for literature.
The author also makes good use of prisoners recounting a few past events to broaden the picture that we can gain from just this one day.
Of course, the author brought to the attention of the world how the tyrant Stalin treated his people, to anyone that disagreed with him or seemed a threat. The story is somewhat dated but still very important in an historical perspective and also a reminder that the modern world should never again expose people to these type of conditions. The story takes place on one single day in 1951 in a Russian prison camp (gulag) in wintry Siberia. Was it no wonder that not one German prisoner from WWII ever returned home to Germany. Nice easy reading after being translated by Max Hayward and Ronald HIngley. Our protagonist is Ivan and his only thoughts every day are food, shelter, staying warm and not being noticed by the brutal guards, and surviving for another day. Ivan functioned in temperatures below zero, bended the rules whenever possible and worked at avoiding punishment, or coming down with a disease and dying with no medical treatment.
Solzhenitsyn doesn't dramatize any part of it; he doesn't need to. This is a fine book, painful, but important for any of us to read, if only to vow in our hearts, that we will show the same courage in great adversity, and, if given the opportunity to treat the enemy like animals, that we will not give in to the temptation. This is not a lengthy book. The spare dark prose speaks for itself. Read it. It doesn't need to be. It is the story of one day for a man named Ivan in the Soviet work camps.
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