Through this, Solzhenitsyn exemplifies Ivan’s insistence on retaining his freedom of choice through his refusal to devote his time to the authorities. In addition, Ivan always remembered the words of his first squad leader, who told him that self-sufficiency was key to survival ?words that Ivan utilizes to maintain his individuality. For instance, Solzhenitsyn reveals that “ never overslept reveille… for the next ninety minutes… belonged to him, not the authorities.”. From the beginning of the novel in which reveille has been called, Solzhenitsyn suggests that the aspect of choice not only defines the day, but allows Ivan to maintain his self worth in spite of the strict disciplines of the camp.

Solzhenitsyn emphasizes this through the depiction of the code of living that Ivan upholds entirely on his own.

In other words, in order to distinguish himself, Ivan must remain in control of his own actions by choosing to act rather than simply following instructions. Existential notions, according to the philosopher Sartre, frequently emphasize the idea of choice “Individuals are condemned, because they are free, to choose what they are going to be through their daily actions”. Solzhenitsyn expands on Ivan’s existential nature through one of Ivan’s most significant traits the behavioral code by which he lives. In One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Solzhenitsyn develops Ivan as an existential character to juxtapose and contrast the gruelling environment propagated by the GULAG authority through the exemplification of Ivan’s behavioral code, and his seamless transition into the absurd setting of the GULAG, in turn producing symbols which serve to compliment Ivan’s existential characteristics. He vividly presents Ivan’s character through the use of various techniques in order to portray Ivan’s existential approach to his imprisonment and survival within a brutal system of injustice. Having had first-hand experiences with this communist regime himself, Solzhenitsyn establishes Ivan and his routine to typify that of an ordinary citizen within the Russian society just as he once was too. He elucidates this effectively through the portrayal of a day’s experiences in the life of Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, a working-class prisoner in a Stalinist labor camp. In his novel One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Alexander Solzhenitsyn illustrates the struggle for survival zeks faced within the GULAG.

Solzhenitsyn a day in the life