Hope In Solzhenitsyn

’s “One Day In The.. Essay, Research Paper

The Theme of Hope in One Day in the

life of Ivan Denisovich

In Alexander Solzhenitsyn.s novel One day in the life of

Ivan Denisovich, the strong themes of hope and perseverance are

undercut by the realization that for Ivan there is little or no

purpose in life. This is not to say that the themes of hope and

perseverance do not exist in the novel. There are numerous

instances in the novel where Shukhov is filled with hope.

However, these moments of hope amidst the banal narrative of the

novel raise the interesting question: Are these moments of hope

pointless. The answer to this question may lie more in the

individual human nature of the reader than in Solzhenitsyn.s

literary technique. Whether pointless or not, Solzhenitsyn

offers many instances in the novel where the themes of hope and

perseverance are evident. The glimpses of hope which Ivan

Denisovich sees includes the few moments after reveille that the

prisoners have to themselves, respecting his fellow prisoners,

taking pride in a job well done, and enjoying simple food and

tobacco.

Solzhenitsyn wrote One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich in

such a fashion that the brutality of the Soviet labor camps is

not emphasized. Instead of focusing on the brutality of the

camps, Solzhenitsyn focused on one day in the life of a very

ordinary prisoner. However, the fact that Ivan Denisovich

Shukhov is such an ordinary man and is still able to find hope in

the most menial of tasks is inspiring. Joseph Frank states that

.Solzhenitsyn.s fundamental theme is precisely the affirmation of

character, the ability to survive in a nightmare world where

moral character is the only safeguard of human dignity and the

very conception of humanity itself is something precious and

valuable. (3302). Much of the Soviet leadership despised

Solzhenitsyn because he instilled within the Soviet people much

of the same hope that is visible in Ivan Denisovich Shukhov.

Solzhenitsyn gave people hope:

Solzhenitsyn.s literary mission, the process of giving

voice to the tens of millions of victims of Soviet

terror, went on secretly, even collectively. Much of

Gulag was based on the hundreds of letters and memoirs

that former prisoners mailed to Solzhenitsyn after One

Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich was published.

Andropov had an intuitive sense that this new work

could do as much, in its way, to undermine Soviet power

as all the nuclear arsenals in the West. (Remnick 118)

Solzhenitsyn uses the every-day occurrences of Ivan Denisovich

Shukhov.s life to accentuate this point about humanity.

Shukhov.s day began with reveille. .Shukhov never slept through

reveille but always got up at once. That gave him about an hour

and a half to himself before the morning roll call. (Solzhenitsyn

1). This short amount of time at the beginning of the day was

precious because it was the only time during the day, except for

a few minutes in the evening, that the prisoners had to

themselves. This short amount of time provided hope for the

prisoners in a number of ways. It was .a time when anyone who

knew what was what in the camps could always scrounge a little

something on the side. (Solzhenitsyn 2). For Ivan Denisovich

Shukhov this meant doing anything from sewing someone a cover for

his mittens out of a piece of old lining to bringing one of the

big gang bosses his dry felt boots while he was still in his

bunk. Tasks like these, done for his own personal satisfaction

rather than the satisfaction of the gang bosses gave Shukhov hope

and reinforced his own personal self worth. On the one day which

Solzhenitsyn presents, however, Ivan Denisovich does not get out

of his bunk at reveille. .He.d been feeling lousy since the

night before–with aches and pains and the shivers, and he just

couldn.t manage to keep warm that night. All the time he dreaded

the morning. (Solzhenitsyn 3). Is Solzhenitsyn foreshadowing

that because Shukhov did not get out of his bed at reveille, as

usual, this will not be an average day in his life in the labor

camps. In fact, exactly the opposite is the case. Solzhenitsyn

is attempting to express that this could be one day in the life

of any average prisoner in the Gulag. Clive states that .Ivan

Denisovich is the Everyman of the Soviet prison system. (143).

An average prisoner would not wake up every morning of his

sentence feeling inspired and hopeful. Although Solzhenitsyn

later depicts Ivan as hopeful and inspired, it would have been

misleading to the themes of the novel if he had made Ivan hopeful

and inspired all of the time. While still lying in bed after

reveille Shukhov decided that he .would try to get himself on the

sick list so he could have the day

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