History Essay - a Day in the Life of Ivan Denovisch
Sage Bassett
100846855
HIST 1001B
TA : Denis
Professor Goldman
One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich
One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich is a novel written by Alexander Solzhenitsyn recalling day events of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov in the Soviet labor camps in Russia in 1951. The novel explores many aspects of life in the Soviet labor camps such as living conditions, survival techniques, the psychological impacts on the prisons, as well as a rough overview of the Soviet regime under Stalin’s dictatorship. Through these aspects we will gain knowledge of the daily routine through the eyes of an encampment prisoner. The labor camps in 50’s Russia under the leadership of Stalin were extreme due to the poor treatment imposed on the prisoners. Not only were the conditions poor but also the treatment they received from the prison guards was near intolerable. The prisoner’s quarters were small and cramped; they did not have sheets for their mattresses and the rooms were searched continuously. Mealtime was scarce for them as they were only allowed to eat 200 grams of bread per meal and often remained hungry. The prisoners had no privacy and every move they made was seen by guards including bathroom breaks. The guards attacked the prisoners physically and forced body searches on them in freezing cold weather. “ When it was freezing, the frisking routine was not so tough in the morning…The prisoners undid their coats and held them open” (Solzhenistsyn, pg 36). The prisoners dealt with viciously cold weather, lack of comfort, and scarce food conditons as well as malicious abuse from the guards.
In such poor living conditions, prisoners must form ways in order to survive, each of them discovering their own. In the novel, the guards replace the names of the prisoners with a series of letters and numbers demoralizing them as people. Shukhov is referred to as “Shcha-854” and in his realization of the prisons motives to strip prisoners of
100846855
HIST 1001B
TA : Denis
Professor Goldman
One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich
One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich is a novel written by Alexander Solzhenitsyn recalling day events of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov in the Soviet labor camps in Russia in 1951. The novel explores many aspects of life in the Soviet labor camps such as living conditions, survival techniques, the psychological impacts on the prisons, as well as a rough overview of the Soviet regime under Stalin’s dictatorship. Through these aspects we will gain knowledge of the daily routine through the eyes of an encampment prisoner. The labor camps in 50’s Russia under the leadership of Stalin were extreme due to the poor treatment imposed on the prisoners. Not only were the conditions poor but also the treatment they received from the prison guards was near intolerable. The prisoner’s quarters were small and cramped; they did not have sheets for their mattresses and the rooms were searched continuously. Mealtime was scarce for them as they were only allowed to eat 200 grams of bread per meal and often remained hungry. The prisoners had no privacy and every move they made was seen by guards including bathroom breaks. The guards attacked the prisoners physically and forced body searches on them in freezing cold weather. “ When it was freezing, the frisking routine was not so tough in the morning…The prisoners undid their coats and held them open” (Solzhenistsyn, pg 36). The prisoners dealt with viciously cold weather, lack of comfort, and scarce food conditons as well as malicious abuse from the guards.
In such poor living conditions, prisoners must form ways in order to survive, each of them discovering their own. In the novel, the guards replace the names of the prisoners with a series of letters and numbers demoralizing them as people. Shukhov is referred to as “Shcha-854” and in his realization of the prisons motives to strip prisoners of