Second Round Of Thought Concerning "One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich"

I cannot fathom the way one must feel while living in a work camp such as the "Special" camp Ivan Denisovich (Shukhov) lived in or the similar type camps known as Concentration Camps put on by the Germans.  Having to be seperated from your family, not knowing if you will survive each day so you can be reunited with them later on.  Along with having to deal with all the hardships that come along with living in such horrid conditions and being treated with such inhumane treatment. 

Over the course of the reading I could see that Shukhov became hard and caloused to things around him and basically put his family out of his mind.  Even though I would find that hard to do myself, I understand his rational for doing so.  If he did not put his family out of his mind then his time would be that much harder and his will to survive would probably go out the window because he would constantly be dwelling on something he may never get to see again.  Also, he must remain focused on his survival at the camp so that he can outwit and stay ahead of all the other prisoners and guards who are trying to outwit him.  It seemed that the whole life in the camp was like a chess match where everyone has to jockey themselves around to stay in the good graces of certain people that could help them get extra food or equipment. 

My last thought about the book was that there were no chapters.  I am not sure if I have ever read a book without chapters.  This may be a common theme with Russian literature but to my knowledge I have never come across a book without chapters except for kids books that have pictures in it.  Just an observation.

First round of thoughts on "One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich"

As I read the first half of the story by Alexander Solzhenitsyn, "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich," I was rather confused as who the characters were and how the book was flowing.  It was hard for me to decipher who was the bad guys in camp and who were the good guys.  I knew that the guards were the bad guys but it seemed like all the other characters in the story who were the prisoners were all enemies of eachother and could not be trusted, thus being bad guys as well.  As I proceeded to read the second half of the story I began to understand who the characters were and started to really enjoy the book.  By the end of the book I was really drawn in and could feel the emotions of each character.  So, even though the story started slow for me at first, it ended with much anticipation and curiosity. 

The Things They Carrie

The author, Tim O'Brien did a wonderful job of giving us insight into all the different objects each individual carried during the Vietnam War and probably all wars.  For those of us who were not there, we hear stories of how bad the war was, but we forget how their bodies must have been so tired and worn out from sleep deprivation, stress from losing friends to death or injury, stress of not knowing if you are going to be killed yourself at any moment, and then to top it all off, having to carry huge amounts of gear around that weighs a lot.  Wow, what harsh conditions to experience. 

At the end of the story when Lieutenant Jimmy Cross began to burn the love letters and pictures sent to him by Martha, I could feel and understand why he felt he had to do that.  He had to let go of the world thousands of miles away so he could focus and lead his men as his position demanded. If he continues to lose men on account of his lack of dedication, he realizes that it will haunt him for the rest of his life.  He also realized that the men under his care are counting on him to pay full attention and keep his head in the war for all their sakes.  I believe he also realized that if he made it back to the states alive, he was going to be a hardened person inside and may not be capable of giving the love to Martha that he thinks she deserves. 

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been

I was really drawn into the story and was held captive from the time Arnold Friend and his buddy Ellie showed up to Connie's house in his car.  The conversation between Arnold and Connie started off like a flirtation but I soon realized he was some type of lunatic or stalker when on page 329 Arnold states, "Connie, you ain't telling the truth.  This is your day set aside for a ride with me and you know it."  With them being out in the country in the middle of nowhere, I could see the scene being set up for some type of tragedy taking place.  As I read, I became ever on edge of my seat until I got to the end of the story.  Once I got to the end I about fell off my seat when I felt it came to an abrupt end.  I hated the ending.  We are left to imagine our own ending.  I felt as though she went willingly in the car so they would not hurt her family and once they left I imagined they brought her out to some desolate place and raped and murdered her.  I was so disappointed in the ending that I went online to see how the movie ending happened and it ended the same way, abruptly.  So, when all said and done, I felt this was a classic thriller of a story until the end, and then I wanted to have a word with Joyce Carol Oates (The Author of this story) and tell her she forgot to write an ending!!!!  Unfortunately the ending destroyed the story for me.

The Gift of the Magi

In the story, "The Gift of the Magi", we are informed at the beginning of the story on how important Della's hair and James watch is to their household.  Because the paragraph about the author explained that O Henry liked to have tricky endings, I prepared myself before hand on twists and turns that may pertain to the hair and watch.  As the story progressed I was able to stay one step ahead of the author and see before hand that she was going to cut off her hair and sell it so she could buy the chain for the watch.  I was also able to foresee that James would sell his watch to buy the set if combs for his wife. 

As humans we know how hard it is to give up something that means so much to us, so when we see someone act in this way we realize how much love is poured out into the thoughtful desire of the individual giving up what is so dear to them.  Even though we first see these two characters as being foolish because they gave up the most important material things in their household, they in turn are seen as very wise because they are not putting their hopes and dreams into material things, but into the one they truly love, their spouse.

The Lottery

I enjoyed the suspense of the story written by Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery."  It was not until Tessie Hutchinson started to yell out that the drawing was not fair and that her husband did not have time to choose that I became suspicious.  Up until that point I thought the drawing was for how each individual was going to participate in their community, a way in which each individual could help better the village.  However, from that point on I felt it was something bad but I did not know why.  Once I got to the end of the story and realized that the person who drew the paper with the black spot was to be stoned, it made me believe that we just got done reading a story that took place during the times of the Salem Witch Trials. 

The foreshadowing of the boys picking up and laying out stones was brilliant!  I did not catch it at first but when I reminisced about the story it really intrigued me how Shirley allowed us to see into the end of the story before getting to it!  I love stories that give twists and turns like this story did, which makes sense why I also really enjoy stories told by Alfred Hitchcock and/or the Twilight Zone. 

A Pair of Tickets

What an intriguing story told in "A Pair of Tickets".  I have two children, so I am flabbergasted when I hear stories of mothers giving up their baby's because I know first hand how much you come to love and cherish your kids.  However, in the circumstances that the narrators mother was put in, I can totally understand why she left the twin baby's.  She did not believe she herself was going to survive, so she wanted her twin girls to have the best chance to live.  What a courageous and selfless act to give up everything you own and hold dear in life.  I can only imagine her heartache and anguish throughout her entire life knowing she had children she could not find and hold, telling them why she did it, and that she loved them wholeheartedly.  Another point I was amazed at was the mother's ability to remain silent all those years, not revealing her twin girls to her second husband and the narrator, her daughter.  How could someone hold a secret for an entire life time as big as this!  Wouldn't you want others to know so they could help in finding the twin girls?  I realize different cultures view situations differently, so I chalk this decision not to tell her family up to the culture the mother grew up in.  The culture may have expected her to remain silent on something so tragic because it may have brought shame to her and the family.  Just a thought.

Cathedral

Of the four short fiction stories this week I enjoyed the Cathedral the most.  I felt the story was easy to read and understand.  I was also able to follow along and comprehend each step of the story unlike the first two stories, "A & P" and "A Rose for Emily".  I have known people like the narrator of Cathedral who always seem to look negatively at life and constantly look for ways to criticize the people around them.  What a horrible and unfulfilled way to live.  I also viewed the narrator as a very jealous person by his actions and his belittling of the blind man whenever his wife were to speak about him.  The drug and alcohol consumption also forces me to believe that the narrator is rather unhappy with life in general and does these things in order to cope with his unhappiness. 
The end of the story was the only part of the story I did not quite understand.  Did the end of the story hold the epiphany?  If it was, I did not quite understand what the epiphany was.  To me it just sounded like the drugs talking.