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.
No comments:
Post a Comment