A Day In The Life Of Ivan

Essay, Research Paper

Vocabulary Words:

1. Valenki – page 18 – Knee length felt boots worn for winter

2. Zek – page 28 – Russian prisoner

3. Volk – Page 41 – wolf

4. Chivvies – page 43 – to hunt or to chase

5. Flanks – page 67- To the right or left side in military formation

6. Decree – page 69 – An authoritative order having the support of the law

7. Hod – page70 – A through carried over the shoulder for transporting

8. Pood – page 74 – thirty-six pounds

9. Sodden – page 70 – thoroughly soaked

10. Kasha – page 75 – oatmeal

11. Loomed – page 79 – to come into view as a massive, distorted image

12. Tyranny – page 84 – Oppressive Power

13. Barrows – page 94 – a large pile of dirt or stones over the dead

14. Mason – page 101 – a skilled worker who builds by laying units of substantial material (such as brick)

15. Sentries – page 115 – a guard standing at a point of entry

16. Paddock – page 122 – an enclosed area for exercising

17. Basin – page 126 – a bowl used for cooking

18. Vechorka – page 127 – an evening newspaper

19. Kopeck – page 139 – a form of money

20. Marrow – page 155 – the substance of the spinal cord

Most Powerful scene:

“There is nothing as bitter as this moment when you go out to the morning roll call -in the dark, in the cold, with a hungry belly, to face a whole day of work. You lose your tongue. You lose all desire to speak.”

This is the most powerful scene to me because when you hear the author describing the conditions that the people were living in and having to face everyday it makes you go empty when you look around and see all that you have. Enough food, a soft bed, and you don’t have to wake up to do harsh labor all day for a few grains of Oatmeal that they consider food. It makes you ache to realize that someone actually went through all of this in one day. The way that this scene is written makes you ache in your stomach and feel the cold wisps of wind that stung Ivan Denisovich’s face that morning.

The Theme of the Novel:

The theme of the novel is about survival. Those who are weak, miserable, and let the life in the prison camp destroy them and their dreams are the ones who don’t and will not ever survive. Those who are clever, willing to do anything, have a powerful will and determined to do everything they can to stay alive on the bits of food they serve them are the ones who will make it out of the prison camp. Ivan Denisovich is one of these clever people. He is a strong and determined man who will not let anything get him down. When Ivan was in the mess hall and the cook was handing out bowls of Kasha (page 75) Ivan used his cleverness to trick the cook into giving him an extra bowl therefore having an extra bowl of Kasha for himself to eat.

Symbols in the Novel:

The pocket that Ivan Had sewed near his chest in his jacked could have something to do with love. The only things that he put in there are things that could have deep meaning.

The bread that he eats every morning for him it is to satisfy his needs of a daily communion with God to prepare him for the long workday ahead.

The number five could have some special meaning to the author religious, spiritual, or otherwise.

The Setting of the Novel:

The novel is set in a labor camp in Russia. The camp is made up of barracks for the prisoners to sleep and live in, extra quarters for the officials, rooms for the guards, a mess hall where everyone, prisoners, officials, and guards all eat, a package room where the mail comes in, offices, and an infirmary to take care of the sick prisoners and personnel. It is well protected on all sides with barricades and fencing so there is no possible way to escape the prison. There are also watchtowers outside the camp to gun down any of the prisoners that may have gotten passed the walls and barricades.

Conflict of the Novel:

Man vs. Society: He is not accepted by some of the people in the camp much less the people outside the camp.

Man vs. Nature: Ivan has to wake up every morning to the cold harshness of the prison camp. And even though he works long hard hours in the cold he gets no pay and a very little amount of food for what he has done that day.

Bibliography

Pink Monkey

Some Barrons

and From the book