“One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich” and the Concept of “Saving People” of Alexander Solzhenitsyn (to 50th anniversary of the first publication)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the 50th anniversary of the first publication of Solzhenitsyn's story «One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich». The necessity of such a character in the literature of the 1960s and the influence of the story on the literary process of the 20th century are considered in the paper. The image of Ivan Afrikanovich Drynov's from novel «Business as Usual» by V. Belov is reviewed as an example. Solzhenitsyn righteous characters like Ivan Denisovich, Matrena Zakharova, Zakhar Kalita, Spiridon Egorov, Arseniy Blagodarev are analyzed. Special attention is paid to the connection of the Solzhenitsyn's novel with its concept of «saving people». The author also presents a review of «One Day ...» by former prisoner, literary historian and professor L. Fink.