NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Book Report
He is the consummate prisoner, with the know-how and optimistic attitude to get through the tortuous days. The story follows one day of his life in a Siberian labor camp, from the moment he wakes up to the moment he goes to bed. Fetiukov: A former office worker of some rank (overseer), he is considered the lowest rank in the 104 th hierarchy. No one in his squad respects Fetiukov because he is one to 'lick others' leftovers.
He scrounges for anything he can get, not concerned about maintaining any degree of dignity and self-control. In the mess hall, Fetiukov often gets beaten up during fights over leftovers. Alyosha: Ivan Denisovich's top bunk neighbor, Alyosha is deeply religious and spends most of his time praying and reading the bible he has kept hidden in a chink in the wall. Alyosha is content with prison life because it gives him time to think about God and about his soul. Ivan Denisovich respects Alyosha because he works hard, serves everyone, and does not engage in the dubious survival tactics of the other prisoners.
Before the prisoners go to sleep, Alyosha shares his faith with Ivan Denisovich. Tiurin: The squad leader of Ivan Denisovich's 104 th division. As a nineteen-year veteran of the prisons, Tiurin is an adept and respected leader who understands how to manipulate the prison system. Having known Ivan Denisovich since their days at Ust-Izhma, Tiurin personally picks him to join his squad when they transfer to their current camp. Tiurin was arrested for being a son of a kulak. Captain Buinovsky: Ivan Denisovich's bottom bunk neighbor (prisoner S 311), he is a former naval captain who acts as though he is still a captain.
Despite being imprisoned unfairly, he remains patriotic to the Communist authorities and genuinely believes in the Soviet regime. He is a relative newcomer to the camp. During the morning inspection, Buinovsky gets ten days in the guardhouse for speaking out against Lieutenant Volkvoi. Ivan Denisovich feels sorry for the captain because with his brash attitude, he will not survive the camp for long.
Unordinary seems to be ordinary. By using each specific detail, he enables the reader to get a reliable visual picture. Its a review of a day in a prison camp. And especially orders play an important rule in a prisoners life. It begins with "Sleeps over " (pg. 37), after that "the escort began shouting: Get a move on! (pg. 41) ." The prisoners must work " 11 hours" inside a power station, "slapping in some [] mortar" (pg. 95).
This punishment is being interrupted by "malaria [] that damned Chinese oatmeal " (pg. 29). Finally in the evening the prisoner must "bear in the icy wind" (pg. 123), while the guards are looking for a Moldavian Fugitive. At the end some couple of hours remain until 22: 00 for the prisoners own life. The plot of this short novel is stunningly simple: The reader follows Ivans life, as he tries to survive one more day in the horrors of a Soviet labor camp in the 1950 s. The simple, unadorned style, however, only amplifies the horror of life reduced to its most essential elements finding food and staying alive. Underneath the insanity, cruelty, and oppression of this inhumane system lies the supreme dignity of a human being who refuses to be dehumanized Compare and contrast the protagonist and antagonist Shukhov, alias Ivan Denisovich is the protagonist in the book.
He is instructing his squad 104 th and serving as a squad leader. "Shukhov know how to manage anything. When you worked for the knowing you gave them quality, [] (else) an eyewash " (pg. 26). And " Thats what a squad (leader) is. A guard cant get people to [] work [], but a squad leader can tell his men to get on with the job, [] and theyll do it. Because hes the one who feeds them. " (pg. 90).
Thats why Shukhov, but essentially for the benefits of his people, represents the man who gives orders and pushes his squad. Because their survival depends on Shukhov ability that their work is being honored in order to get enough food etc.
He and the members of the 104 th group manage to survive because of Ivan's personal attention to himself and his care about the others. More importantly, Ivan survives because his intelligence, his spirit, his deception and careful teamwork.
He always thinks about the future, which make an outcome for himself. Without an outcome a person may become very sad and may not want to do anything, so he actually make himself live longer. For example, "Freedom meant one thing to him - home" (Solzhenitsyn, Pg. 140). He is still thinking of home which he thinks that he still have hope to get out of the camp. so he wants to save his own life and go home in order to have freedom.
Also, in his mind, work is not for money, but for satisfaction. So, he does not think that work is boring and hard to do, he thinks that they are challenges.
Free research essays on topics related to: labor camp, main character, prison camp, ivan denisovich, h 2
Research essay sample on One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich