A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Communism at its worst

Control Freak

In the former Soviet Union, the concept of an individual was lost through communist theory and Stalin’s unyielding power. Stalin accomplished this by having control of the media, laws, the government and even people’s minds. Stalin followed the Marxist guidelines to communism and created a faceless nation. These conditions in the Soviet work camps magnify the Communist tyranny that Stalin has created. The work camps allow no freedom for the prisoners to think for themselves. They are told when they can eat, when they can sleep, and how long they should be working. Stalin had all of the power that he ever wanted. But what makes this so ironic is that in a communist nation, everybody is supposed to have equal social and economic status.

The prisoner’s focus is survival. Since they’re under control by the labor camp system, all they can do is work to try to fulfill their prison sentence. The prison system controls bread rations, so that the prisoners have little energy to function, let alone rebel. Now the prisoners fight and scavenge for these measly bowls of watered down gruel and a few ounces of bread just to cheat the system. “Shukhov watched to see which bowls he filled before the good part settled back at the bottom of the caldron and which had only the watery stuff on top.” (167) This came with his experience in the camp. He knew how to attain extra servings of bread, soup bowls and trays. Shukhov also ran errands for others who had tobacco or substantial food. This is the mentality that a prisoner must adapt to, or else they will be stuck with the same six ounces of bread rations per week.

The prisoners had to imagine that the small meal in front of them was enough to make it through the rest of the day. “But every little fishbone and every piece of fin had to be sucked to get all of the juice out of it-it was good for you.” (170) These parts of the fish are considered table scraps to the reader. This was the prisoners main course. Shukhov swindled cooks for extra food just to try to calm his coveting stomach. “The warmth went right through his body and his insides were sort of quivering waiting for that gruel to come down. It was great! This was what a prisoner lived for, this one little moment.” (169) That moment allowed the prisoner to have enough energy for a full day’s work in freezing cold conditions.

This is a preview of the whole essay

If prisoners were still in contact with family from the outside, they were lucky enough to receive packages of food. By being in a camp for that long, the prisoner’s stomach began to form a mind of its own. “And he stopped thinking right away that he might get any of this fancy stud and he shut it out of his mind. It was no good aggravating your belly for nothing.” (179) Now that Caesar has his package full of more wholesome food, Shukhow now gets the bread ration that he stole for him. It’s great method of thinking because Shukhow now has double the amount of bread rations. The control that Stalin had on these camps was so extreme, it changed the way a man eats.. Everybody received the same amount of food, but there were alternatives. It turned the prisoners into hunters who had to track down extra food. Finding extras of anything was tough for the prisoners since they are only allowed to have the standard meals and uniforms. Yet again, the system controls individuality.

If a prisoner is caught with anything such as a knife or some type of tool, they could lose everything by being stuck in the cooler, the most intimidating method of punishment in the camp. It is only warm enough to partially melt the ice that has frozen on the edges of the room. The prisoner was fed even less than the inmates outside. This method of punishment created a way of controlling the prisoner in all aspects. These prisoners have not been able to think for themselves, so the cooler could destroy all mental stability. Shukhov could get ten days in the cooler for his knife. Although it may seem as a good way to control the camp’s prisoners, it does not stop the experienced inmates from trying to hide their assets. Many of the experienced inmates found methods of hiding various tools. This gave the prisoner a step ahead of the other inmates. But they could lose everything by being stuck in the cooler. This is not the only thing that the prisoner must deal with.

One very important method of trying to survive in the prison camp is to deal with other prisoners. In Ivan’s camp, the “newly sentenced” usually had to honor the more experienced prisoners by giving up their seat in the cafeteria, food, or any other sacrifices. Just like on the outside of the camps, everybody relies on each other for survival. It is what Stalin had hoped for. But in the camps, if the prisoners do their work, they would suffer severe punishment. The group depended on each other to earn their bread rations at dinner. They also depended on each other to bring bundles of wood for the fire to keep warm at camp after work. “What the prisoners figured was if every man from every gang brought just one piece back with him, it’d be that much warmer in the barracks.” (131) By working together, the gangs could create a better environment for themselves. The gang leader may be the highest ranked of the group, but he must try to fight for higher rates for the prisoners, including himself. Schukov gains the most respect from the gang. He is considered the father of the gang. It is important for them to show respect and honor towards each other.

There are different gangs, and they were not fond of each other because each gang did not want another to gain more. They helped the sick members of the gang, and made sure that nobody would get sent to the can. This is because one more worker in the gang means less work for themselves. The camp would bicker amongst themselves about how they were not doing the job correctly. If somebody would be lagging behind the rest of the gang, then they would get harassed by their boss and fellow inmates. Because of this family grouping, they all must work at the same pace in order to finish in time for dinner. Although the prisoners are working for themselves, they care about how others are doing physically to make sure that they stay ahead of the other gangs. The main reason that they had to stick together was because they found out the battles within the gangs and the system cannot be won as individuals. Those who would try to fight as individuals would suffer severe consequences.

As an individual prisoner, it is tough to deal with certain struggles such as depression and loneliness. The camp made prisoners realize that they cannot survive on their own. If prisoners tried to steal more food, make tools, or simply tried to defend themselves, then they would be sent to the cooler. The cooler isolated the prisoner away from the outside world, more than the camp itself, to make the prisoners realize that trying to survive on their own by having more than their fellow prisoner was the wrong way to go. The gang had to beat the system by rebelling against it as a group without the bosses finding out. By staying together, the group can accomplish more without much of a risk. The gang had to think through their situations. Unlike themselves, those living on the outside of the camps have more freedom and less punishment.

In order to survive, Ivan and his fellow gang members had to develop a different way of thinking than those outside the camp. This mentality would help them with food, sleep, and tobacco. In order to keep this mentality from failing, the entire group had to think together and show respect towards each other. The prisoners represent this philosophy for survival and respect, which helped them survive their prison sentences. Individuals would not be acknowledged. They would just suffer. In order for the prisoners to survive as individuals, they had to do their work and find alternatives to the standard food rations. If they could not adapt, the prisoners would die of malnourishment or the deadly temperatures.

Communism is supposed to provide the whole community with property and equality. Everybody should enjoy equal social and economical status. Stalin created these Soviet work camps in Siberia for those who could not follow his powerful laws. More prisoners that would gather in these camps meant more power. The prisoners were treated with no respect, and they were barely living off of the meager servings of food, heat and sleep. Individuals were dehumanized and stripped of their individuality. They now wore a uniform labeled a number stitched on. Now, the prisoners within the groups must work together to survive or else they will not earn more food and sleep. It seems that as much as the communists want to ban capitalism, there is still a sense of “the survival of the fittest”. The group who worked the hardest earned a little bit more. A Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich has shown the evil side of communism. Although Stalin was a control freak, he had complete control of the Soviet Union, even making the United States intimidated. After Stalin, the country has fallen into a state of turmoil that has made the entire nation experience the same distress that these prisoners felt.

Word Count: 1630