day in his life in the laborcamps? In fact, exactly the opposite is the case. Solzhenitsynis attempting to express that this could be one day in the lifeof any average prisoner in the Gulag. Clive states that ^IvanDenisovich is the Everyman of the Soviet prison system^ (143). An average prisoner would not wake up every morning of hissentence feeling inspired and hopeful. Although Solzhenitsynlater depicts Ivan as hopeful and inspired, it would have beenmisleading to the themes of the novel if he had made Ivan hopefuland inspired all of the time. While still lying in bed afterreveille Shukhov decided that he ^would try to get himself on thesick list so he could have the day off. There was no harm intrying. His whole body was one big ache^ (Solzhenitsyn 4). Thisattempt to get out of working for the day proved to be futile. In addition, if Shukhov had managed to get on the sick list andstay in bed all day it would not have been an accurate depictionof one day in the life of an ordinary prisoner. InSolzhenitsyn^s depiction of this ordinary day he manages to showwhat could be the worst morning possible for a prisoner. Ivandoes not get on the sick list and he is dragged out of bed tocomplete the menial task of mopping a floor simply because hefailed to get up at reveille. While he is moping the floor,despite his aches and pains and the freezing cold, Shukhov isable to ponder a hopeful philosophy: ^There^s work and work. It^s like the two ends of a stick. If you^re working for humanbeings, then do a real job of it, but if you work for dopes, thenyou just go through the motions. Otherwise they^d all havekicked the bucket long ago^ (Solzhenitsyn 14). The glimmers ofhope in this morning are so vibrant that after the publication ofthe novel ^Solzhenitsyn was informed by thousands of letters fromformer prisoners, the integrity of his peasant hero had returnedto them the conviction of their own human worth^ (Kelly 3311). This morning...
