Connection Captain #2- Sophia S

The amount of work Ivan and the prisoners have to do for one day makes me feel ill inside. We are not even halfway through the book, and Ivan has to work in freezing cold and is not dressed properly for it. Especially at night where the temperature drops low, and all they have to cover themselves is there small amount of clothing and a blanket that does not help with the cold. Many diseases spread among a huge crown who sleeps in the same tent, so getting sick is very easy. But to the prisoners getting sick is a gift. Like Ivan mentioned he does not want a deadly illness, but one where he can go to the hospital and have warm food and be treated like a human and not an animal. If you can believe these inhuman acts are being caused by the same species, one of the most deadly species on this planet, humans. Humans are treating other humans like animals. Ivan is a prisoner in Russia but many more documented stories of prisoners just like him are out there. One example is Vladek Spiegelman from the book Maus. Maus takes place in Poland during WWII. For a period of time Vladek spends time in concentration camps specifically one called Auschwitz. I don't remember much of his time spent there, but what I do remember is that they give you one small meal a day, when it is cold they live you in a tent to feel the cold breeze enter and you shiver to death. Most of the time Vladek was there it was winter which seems like it is the longest and common season in Europe. Since in both books they both suffer from the cold. Another example is from a book we are reading now called Diary of Anne Frank. After two years in hiding both families (Franks and Van Dans) are separated and sent to concentration camps. The Franks and Van Dans died except for one. Otto Frank, who was the father of Anne was the only survivor of the family. Otto was sent to Auschwitz and as we know is not a friendly camp from reading Maus and doing research about it. He spent a year in concentration which is not nearly as much time as Ivan spent which was 8 years in the Soviet camp. One thing that all of them have in common is that they all had hope. After spending 8 years there Ivan is still going strong and not giving up. Vladek had a wife and a child to go back to. Otto had a whole family to hug again, but unfortunately they lost hope as none of them survived. I think that they all survived because they had something worth living for which helps you become stronger and more with a determined mind. Instead of losing all hope that you are never going to see your family again, you will become depressed, and eventually stop trying which in the end is going to get you killed. It is a proven fact that the ones more optimistic are the ones with a higher chance of survival than the ones who negative. So while I am reading One day I am eager to read more about Ivan and his personality and how he got through years and years of the same routine without losing himself.

This is a drawing of how Concentration Camps usually look like. Would you lose hope if your were one of them?
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