One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich Analysis

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Recommended: Essays on what existentialism is

The Existential Molding: Guarding a Delicate Flame
Existentialism is highly focused on the formation of the individual. The construction of said individual is completed through a process of exercising free will and self-government. This concept is evident in Ivan Denisovich: a man sentenced to an unjust term of imprisonment in a Russian gulag. The Russian gulag is an environment in which the individual is a faint spark, struggling to survive. If the environment is unable to smother the flame, the tough guards will be sure to extinguish the delicate glimpse of any individualism. Through such harsh conditions, Ivan utilizes both free will and self-government to become the existential self- made individual and maintain what is at times a dull flicker of originality. This is well represented in Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s novel One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich in which he demonstrates the vitality of the self-made individual through the existential conflicts and relationships of Ivan.
Throughout the book, it is quite apparent that the guards will do nearly anything to suck the …show more content…

Der believes himself to be an engineer, however Solzhenitsyn displays his disagreement when he states, "A man should build a house with his own hands before he calls himself an engineer." (81). The article previously mentioned informs the reader that existentialists emphasize that the human nature is defined through individual decisions (Existentialism). This means that in order to become an individual, one must work their way through personal decisions and exercising free will. The same goes for being an engineer. If one has no background in engineering, this person cannot call themselves an engineer. If there is no effort to develop individuality, there is no individual. In the existential mindset, it is absurd to give titles to those who are not deserving of

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