One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn Essay

Alexander Solzhenitsyns employment in episodes one and two of One Day in the career of Ivan Denisovich is to develop Ivan Denisovich Shukhov as a mediator for individualised views and then to hand those views on life, prison, and control to the reader. This purpose is accomplished by the authors social function of characterization, symbolism, and aphorism.The readers companionship of Shukhov is almost as restricted as the rules set forth in Shukhovs prison, and there is nothing that sets Shukhov apart from the rest of the captives. This allows the reader to focus slight on him as a character and more on what he is intended to convey. The authors first use of characterization occurs in the quotation, Shukhov never overslept reveille. He always got up at once, for the next ninety, until they assembled for work, belonged to him, not to the authorities (17). Through this quotation, the reader recognizes how Shukhov is willing to partake in the many a(prenominal) challenges set forth by authority, but still appreciates the time he can set aside for himself. This characterization of Shukhov shows that the author values the musical theme of self-awareness. This is essential further in the novel as seen when Shukhov reflects on the greatness of mealtime or breaks as solely for ones self, which contrastingly reveals the extent in which authority has stolen time from the prisoners. Another example of characterization stems from the quotation, Shukhov realized, as he had guessed on the way there, that he wasnt being sent to the guardhouse at allit was only when that the guardroom floor needed scrubbing (23). This quotation shows that Shukhov has an in-depth understanding of the operations in spite of appearance his prison and can be trusted by the reader to extend reliable exposure. The rea... ... the prisoners survived. This is necessary to understand for later in the novel when an impressiveness is placed on ones ability to outsmart the authority in ru les of order to actually survive prison. For instance, when Shukhov tricks the cook in prison into giving his team more dishes. By using aphorisms from Shukhov, Solzhenitsyn is able to express universal truths to cast down the communistic society around him, a personal view he wished to share on a global scale. Through the characterization of Shukhov, the use of symbolism, and the use of aphorisms, Solzhenitsyn is able to recognize Shukhov as a mediator of his personal views thus providing the reader with the observations that he has made as a prisoner himself.Works CitedSolzhenitsyn, Alexander. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Trans. Ralph Parker. New York E.P. Dutton, a Division of Penguin, 1963. Print.