Truth Tellers: Alexander Isayevich Solzhenitsyn

Contact Your Elected Officials
The Epoch Times Header

One of the most important writers of the 20th century, Solzhenitsyn revealed to the world the crimes of the Soviet system.

โ€œHow easy for me to live with You, O Lord! How easy for me to believe in You!โ€ The believer Alexander Isayevich Solzhenitsyn, had every reason not to believe: poverty in childhood, the front lines in Hitlerโ€™s war, arrest, torture, imprisonment, hard labor, cancer, persecution and humiliation. All these were the birth pains of his faith and the catalyst of his great literary works.

He was born on Dec. 11, 1918, in Northwest Russia, and raised in the Russian Orthodox religion, a crime in the Soviet state. Government schooling and a science degree fashioned him into an atheist for a time, but only a time.

A gradual return to spiritual ways began during his trials in the Russian army and his arrest for slandering Stalin in a letter to a friend. The penalty was eight years in prison camps, virtually a death sentence by overwork and starvation.

The shadowโ€”and the lightโ€”of these eight life-changing years fell upon his entire literary output, and although he wrote in a journalistic style he was in truth, a poet, and a prophet.

ย โ€˜The Gulag Archipelagoโ€™

โ€œThe Gulag Archipelago,โ€ his most important work, is a tale of cruelties inflicted on prisoners in the Soviet penal system. It is a masterpiece of reporting, but, more significantly, it is a narrative of the struggle to come to terms with injustice and the desperate battle to stay alive.

Much has been written about the effects of brutality on the prisoners, how they were turned into beasts, but the few who were not seem to be passed by unnoticed. One thinks of the many pinecones falling to the ground in a forest, and the few that germinate and grow into stately trees. โ€œI am not going to examine those countless cases of evil here. They are well known to everyone,โ€ Solzhenitsyn wrote.

He observed that one inmate, who ardently preached that camp life can only corrupt, was not himself corrupted: He wouldnโ€™t betray his fellow prisoners for an extra piece of bread or a shorter sentence. This man disproved his own claim.ย  Most incorruptible were the truly religious people, โ€œtheir self-confident procession through the campโ€”a sort of silent religious procession with invisible candles.โ€

His two most notable works of fiction are the novels, โ€œThe First Circle,โ€ and โ€œOne Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,โ€ a synthesis of characters and events from his prison days.

Byย Raymond Beegle

Read Full Article on TheEpochTimes.com

The Epoch Times
The Epoch Timeshttps://www.theepochtimes.com/
Tired of biased news? The Epoch Times is truthful, factual news that other media outlets don't report. No spin. No agenda. Just honest journalism like it used to be.

Cracker Barrelโ€™s Remake Proves Lefty Women Unfit to Lead

โ€œThe customer is always rightโ€ remains true today regardless of whether people like Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Masino opt to respect it and follow it or not.

Walmart on Its Radioactive Shrimp: โ€˜The Health and Safety of Our Customers Is Always a Top Priority’

โ€œNowadays people know the price of everything and the...

Trump Boldly Takes on Woke Indoctrination in America’s Museumsย 

President Trump is correcting the leftist agenda turning our cultural institutions into propaganda mills for victimhood and anti-American sentiment.ย 

Wicked Right

I recently watched the movie Wicked and wasn't surprised by how transparent and utterly progressive it was intended to be.

Will humanity be the victim of technological change or the master of its fate in 2026?

It's often debated whether history is primarily shaped by influential individuals, social structures, or technological innovation.

Women-Only Spa Seeks Re-Hearing in Ninth Circuit Over Admission of Transgender-Identifying Men

Olympus Spa, a women-only Korean-style spa in Washington State was legally forced to allow in transwomen, is seeking a re-hearing.

Authorities Bust Multimillion Dollar LA-Area Cargo Theft Ring

Authorities in LA County have cracked a storefront operation trafficking millions of dollars worth of goods allegedly stolen in train and cargo burglaries.

FBI Warns of Russian Cyber Hackers Targeting Critical US Infrastructure

Russian hackers breached computer systems at manufacturing plants, power grids, water treatment facilities, and other critical infrastructure in US, FBI warned.

US Manufacturing Surges to 3-Year High as Demand Strengthens, Hiring Picks Up

Americaโ€™s manufacturing sector activity shot up to a 39-month high in August, driven by a surge in domestic and export demand for U.S. factory goods.

Chip Stocks Fall on Reports White House Seeking Equity in Exchange for Grants

Share prices of semiconductor companies fell following reports the Trump admin is considering taking equity stakes in exchange for federal funding.

Judge Declares Alina Habbaโ€™s Roles as US Attorney for New Jersey โ€˜Unlawfulโ€™

A federal judge found that Alina Habba, a former attorney to Trump, has been unlawfully serving as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey since July.

US, EU Unveil Trade Deal Details, Capping Tariffs and Unlocking Billions in Energy and Tech Purchases

US and EU published details of trade framework caping most U.S. tariffs on European exports at 15% and commits bloc to purchases of American energy, tech, and defense equipment.

Trump Buys $100 Million in Bonds Since Return to White House

President Donald Trump has been an active investor in the bond market since returning to the White House in January.
spot_img

Related Articles