I honestly can't remember if I first read Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" in high school or in college. I think it was high school, which on a side note reassures me of the quality education I received growing up. In any event, it along with other books and films, opened my eyes to a way of life and struggle that was completely foreign to me, but not necessarily my generation. I thank God for authors like Solzhenitsyn for they shook my reality and chipped away at a anything resembling complacency for mankind that would like to take root in my heart.
Mr. Solzhenitsyn passed away in Moscow last night at 89 years old. There is, fittingly, an 'eye-opening' tribute to him in today's New York Times that addresses the fact that the man that exposed the world to the evils being carried out in the name of Communism is somehow losing relevance in our modern world - even in his native country. Here is a particulary troubling excerpt:
Approached at a park in Moscow, Taisiya Gunicheva, 17, a college student, said she had heard of Mr. Solzhenitsyn, but could not name any of his books.
She said his work was largely absent from her school curriculum. “Can you imagine, there is nothing about it at all,” she said. “It is sad, but unfortunately, it’s true.”
Nearby was Anton Zimin, 26, an advertising copywriter, who said he was quite familiar with Mr. Solzhenitsyn but doubted that others in his generation were. He said people his age have lost touch with the struggles of their parents and grandparents.
“The problem is that now, it’s all about consumption – this spirit that has engulfed everybody,” Mr. Zimin said. “People prefer to consume everything, the simplest things, and the faster, the better. Books are something that force you to think, reading books requires some effort. But they prefer entertainment.”
Andrei V. Vasilevsky, Editor in Chief of the magazine that first published "One Day...", had this to say for a society that no longer sees the need for larger cultural leaders and thinkers. "There is no demand for great people," he said. "I can't say why, but this fact is simply obvious to me. Famous, notable, popular - yes. But not great, in the fullest sense of the world."
In a related note music industry blogger Bob Lefsetz wrote a nice essay challenging the artists of today based on the life of Mr. Solzhenitsyn in his 'Lefsetz Letter' - click the link to read for yourself.
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