The Past is Present

 

Put the past behind us, and let’s move on forward. This is an appealing mindset to adopt when we strive to overcome problems we face in life. Yet completely erasing the past from our memory can serve as a detriment to our futures, as it deprives us of the lessons sometimes only the past can teach us. Books are a medium for spreading knowledge, as they can preserve, communicate, and with the aid of literary gifts, tell a story that can effectively impart the lessons from the past to readers of all ages. This book, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, speaks to high schoolers not only for the content it covers, but for the comparison to their own lives the story provides, and the opportunity to learn from the manners in which the characters deal with tribulations.

 

High schoolers can benefit from reading this book, as it teaches them about a significant time in Russian history. Students are presented with a story, which serves as a window into the past, rather than presented with an array of facts. This helps the students connect better to the situations presented, enabling effective learning. Along with the history the book explores, the manner in which the events are relayed play a central role in determining what readers can take away from it. Ingenuous assumptions that the world’s best stories are only those that depict extraordinary and memorable events are often made. However, Solzhenitsyn’s choice of “portray[ing] one of the most ordinary days of the life at camp from reveille to retreat" (Solzhenitsyn xx) make the story more relatable to high schoolers. The ordinariness of the events -- at least from Shukov’s perspective-- enable high schoolers to compare their "normal" to Shukov's "normal", and understand how the depiction of even an ordinary day for a man who spends his days in a camp is enough to land a country in political turmoil. Another factor in the book’s appeal to high schoolers is its depiction of characters they can relate to. Shukov “has a different education-- he knows how to stay out of solitary and how to hide a piece of hacksaw blade in his mitten” (Solzhenitsyn xii). Shokuv learns to make the best of situations by being “street smart”. The importance that is put on this type of knowledge may speak to high schoolers who may be tired of hearing of the all-importance of an academic education, where they are aware that other types of knowledge matter in life as well. Another aspect of the book all readers can learn from is the positive mindset that is maintained by the characters despite the hardships they face. Readers can learn from Denisovich’s mindset which is characterized by hopefulness and toleration he maintains even as he suffers within the walls of the Soviet camps. Irrespective of our situations in life, we can learn from his mindset, as from time to time we may question the meaning of things about our lives such as our education or career. This quote expresses the mindset many could benefit from emulating: “Ivan Denisovich has accepted the camp as a given, a stage set on which he is merely an actor who must play a part, whether he likes the set or not” (Solzhenitsyn x).

 

The hardships the characters in this book face enables readers to be informed of the terrible realities of life in the Gulag. Not only are readers informed of the historical context, but through Solzhenitsyn’s skillful depiction of the characters, they are able to take away valuable life lessons. The knowledge of history ties directly to our success in the future, as we can turn to it for aid when we are wanting of past instances to guide our course of actions. The past will always exist to support us, cushioning our falls and guiding us forward in life.