Animal Imagery in One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich

One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich takes readers through life in a Russian prison camp
during the days of Stalin. The character and story are based on the author's real-life experience as
an unjustly held political prisoner. Beatings, starvation and cruelty were the staples of existence
for the prisoners, who carved out their daily life through exhaustive work camp labor in sub-zero
temperatures. Driven to the edge of survival, readers witness the subtle means by which the lead
character maintains his sense of humanity. From simply hanging on to a secret spoon to eat with
that he made himself as a means of small hope, to the end of the book where he shows care for
his fellow prisoners - the main character's focus is not on things that were lost, such as his former
life of freedom with his wife - but instead on things within the camp that he finds to keep him
going, such as a pair of felt boots or a small piece of bread he hides to eat later. Such perspective
embodies the courageous qualities of the human spirit.
Shukhov tells the story from dawn to dusk, highlighting the inhumanities of the labor camp and
illuminating that which was once dark to the world.
The story focuses on major themes such as the dehumanization of prisoners and the lengths
necessary to preserve ones humanity in a truly inhumane environment. Throughout this single
day in prison, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, who, along with many other prisoners, has accepted his
fate and period of servitude in the labor camp, attempts to survive. The days events may seem a
bit repetitive; however, this repetition is necessary in order to highlight the severity of key
factors opposing Shukhovs survival, mainly the dehumanizing guards (who refer to the prisoners

by code name at certain times, instead of the Soviet brotherly title of comrade), the
malnutrition forced upon prisoners, and the harsh freezing associated with the environment.
Throughout this day-to-day experience, Shukhov must endure, preserving his humanity on the
hope of leaving some day. This one day seems rather average, but that seems to have been the
authors intention (to make a day which would serve as a representation of each and every day of
imprisonment in the Soviet Gulag).
The animal terminology applied to the prisoners serves to emphasize the dehumanizing
conditions in the camp. The author has relates many animals to Shukhovs character. He referred
Shukhov as an uncaged bird (142). This tells us that Shukhov finds his freedom in food. As
mentioned in the text when Tsezar gave Shukhov the permission to eat his food it was like
Shukhov had already made plans in his mind on what to do next when Tsezar offers him his
food. If we free a bird from a cage, firstly it will fly as fast as it could in order to avoid getting
back into that cage and secondly if its hungry and looking for something to put in its belly it
wouldnt depend on its desires itll just eat something to satisfy its hunger. Shukhov is similar to
the bird in speed as well. Shukhov runs to the extra portion he has earned for supper "like a free
bird". Birds (some of them) are known to preserve food which is also one of the characteristics
Shukhov shares with it.
The author also mentions that Shukhov sees with the eye of a falcon (107). Falcons fly at high
speed, they have exceptional powers of vision and practically so does Shukhov. Solzhenitsyn
mentions that Shukhov has a sharp eye (58) and the context Shukhov didnt make mistakes,
though. The blocks werent all the same. If one of them had a corner knocked off a kinky edge or

a blister, Shukhov spotted it right away and knew which way around it needed to be laid and
which spot in the wall was just waiting for it. (99)
This paragraph suggests that Shukhov was much focussed on his work, he was alert, attentive,
observant and was able to think clearly, to notice things that were going in the wrong direction.
The author mentions that Ivan is a snout (37) and his face-cover is a "muzzle" (36). Snout
refers to the long nose of some animals. It is the forward. projecting part of the head of certain
animals, such as dogs, including the mouth, nose and jaws. Muzzle is a restraint on free
movement or expression that prevents animal from biting or in this case eating, which is worn on
its snout. Ivan is called that because he knows what to avoid. And so long as he follows the rules
of the camp, he will earn his rightful gruel. He has his own spoon with which he eats and after
hes finished eating, he doesnt lick the bowl. But that doesnt mean that he isnt hungry; he is.
But if he fulfills his desires, hell be beaten up by the guards. In this respect, by far the most
important event in his life is food; Shukhov has developed an extraordinary attitude toward the
watered-down soup and black bread which sustain him. To eat becomes a ritualized experience in
which the resurrection of bodily joy or rather, since he never gets enough, the heightened
tension of desire on the verge of fulfillment becomes the physical ground of faith in the value
of life. Soup time becomes a "sacred moment" a revelation deep in the body's pleasure that at
bottom and in spite of everything life is strong and worth its pain. Extremity intensifies
experience, purifies it, forces men to the essence of their encounters with reality. Shukhov eats
his soup, and bliss wells up like a visitation, like an extravagant blessing, as though this second
bowl, tricked from the cooks, were the fullest beneficence of God. Shukhov attains that rarest of
moments, when a man is simply, and against all evidence, happy to be alive. Shukhov is a

snout can also be used as a metaphor. He is considered that way because he is known to abide
by the rules and regulations, never shows lousiness or improper behavior. The fact that hes being
referred to an animal is not only for him.
Not only do the guards call the prisoners invariably by number, denying them the status of
human beings with names, but they also use the familiar form of address (ty) an intimacy
most insulting in this context. Little food was given and the prisoners only received what they
needed to stay alive. They were treated as though they weren't human. As for Shukhov, he is
treated as a slave and yet returns quality work. He is "a slave on the outside and on the inside, a
warrior." [24]. The guards, address Ivan in dehumanizing terms, complain about his careless
mopping performance (13-14).
Shukhov might be unique in his own ways and qualities but guards considered him equal to other
prisoners. At many places in the book, Shukhov and the other prisoners are considered equal to
dogs. It is quoted Its dog eat dog here (75). They are driven by guards with dogs (sobakovody
s sobakami, p. 31) and are themselves often compared to dogs (sobaki): Der (a zek foreman)
treats them "worse than dogs" (p. 37), the Captain "barks" (gavknul, p. 39), they freeze like dogs
(p. 42), they act like dogs--"you need only show a beaten dog the whip" (p. 46), the Muscovites
"smell each other out like dogs" (p. 96). This means the guards have prisoners under their
control. If a prisoner is slow doing some work, make him recall what happened the last time or
just tell him what the punishment will be hell facing if he doesnt complete the work hes
assigned. Hell be off to work in no time.
The novel One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich shows us a different view of life. Alexander
Solzhenitsyn tells the readers that behind those bars is an animal life that no one would be glad to

live in. Prisoners are known not by their name but by animals. The kind of animal any prisoner is
referred to depends on his personality, his work, his habits and most importantly what he shows
to the world. Citizen guards also refer to prisoners as animals so that they do their work fast and
the guards are done with their duty. The is no favoritism in this novel. All prisoners are treated
equally as animals and given the exact amount of food they need to survive. The brutalization is
underscored by the metaphorical scheme of the work, based almost entirely on animal images.

Reference:
1. Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr. One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich. New York: Farrar, Straus
and Giroux, Inc. 1978