One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich - Solzhenitsyn's Faith

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One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's Faith

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is a professed Christian. However, according to some critics, this does not necessarily make his writings "Christian" (Schmemann 39). Biblical principles can clearly be identified in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. They can be seen through Solzhenitsyn's views on the world as a divine creation, the nature of evil, and faith in the future.

The Christian faith is rooted in the belief that God created everything, and that it is good. According to Christian belief, God has a plan for His creation, and therefore there is no need to be pessimistic. At first, this Christian view seems an unlikely fit with Solzhenitsyn's prison camp-based novel. However, in one instance, while Ivan Shukhov Denisovich is working, he asks his captain about the moon and its phases. Shukhov tells the officer, "Where I come from, they used to say God breaks up the old moon to make stars" (116). The captain is amused and calls Shukhov a savage for believing in God. Shukhov i...

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