Importance Of Dignity In One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich

The Importance of Dignity and the Strength of the Human Spirit

Nobody could possibly imagine the sorrow and misery that a Soviet prisoner experienced during Stalinism. Thousands of innocent people were taken from their families, stripped of their dignity, and banished to the harsh labor camps where they live day to day, finding pleasure in the smallest of achievements. This is exactly what Alexander Solzhenitsyn expresses in his novel, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Solzhenitsyn gives the reader a perspective into the life of a typical prisoner who experienced this hardship and shares the small acts of humanity that offer a bit of comfort to help him get through a single hour, day, or even just a mealtime in such horrible conditions. …show more content…
The distribution and consumption of food shows insight into the generosity, humility, and the attempts made by the prisoners to maintain their dignity. Solzhenitsyn portrays the humility of the men to each other's wellbeing by placing the characters in situations in which they must rely on each other for their food. Early in the novel, Shukhov misses his breakfast one morning, however the men in his gang would “keep his breakfast for him and didn’t have to be told.” (Solzhenitsyn 8). When the men have their noon meal, Ivan obtains two additional bowls of food for his gang. Every man in the gang that would love to have extra food, however Pavlo, the assistant gang boss, decides to give it to a man who is new to the camps. The way that Pavlo decides who the soup should go to is noble in itself, let alone the fact that the other men in the gang don’t argue with him about their want for the extra food. The small amounts of food lifts the prisoners’ spirits, and Shukhov even goes so far as to wish that the new prisoner would receive another extra bowl of food, rather than wishing for more bowl himself. The gang members show compassion for one another and in essence they are keeping their humanity by not allowing their dire situation to wear away at their human kindness and morality. They are not completely selfish and look out for each others …show more content…
Shukhov does not passively accept the camps attempt to dehumanize him. Shukov shows that the way to maintain human dignity is not through outward rebellion, and instead through developing a personal belief system. The only way that these men survive this vicious life is by holding on to the small amounts of kindness that can be seen in trivial actions and events during their day. The prisoners’ dedication to uplifting each other is inspiring and is a lesson and example to every human being of the power of human kindness and how greatly it can affect those around