V. Golitsyn

 V. Golitsyn

“No, honestly-however many letters you receive, those from zeks stand out unmistakably. Such extraordinary toughness they show! Such clarity of purpose combined with such vigor and determination! In our day, if you get a letter completely free from self-pity, genuinely optimistic- it can only be from a former zek. They are used to the worst the world can do, and nothing can depress them.”- (page 448)

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described how righteous individuals were able to persevere despite the adversities. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described that righteous individuals were able to persist because of their zeal for the worship of GOD Almighty and positivity. Individuals that were faithful were also positive. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described that being optimistic helps persevere amidst obstacles, persecution, and times of difficulty.

Once individuals completed their sentence in gulag and survived, they would be exiled to other nations outside of Soviet Russia. Despite being exiled, individuals were happy because they were able to have freedom and autonomy outside of gulag. Individuals described how they had gratitude despite having gone through gulag and persecution. There were individuals that knew that the adversities and difficulties were because of the envy of socialists and informants.

“The pictures of the past conjured up are by no means all dark and harrowing; we have many warm and pleasant memories.” (page 447)

Golitsyn was another individual that was positive and had gratitude despite having gone through gulag. Golitsyn described that despite having gone through all the negativity of the socialists and informants, righteous individuals still saw the positive out of everything. Even when they had been persecuted and sent to gulag on false accusations, they still had memories of the positive and good. Golitsyn remembered that not everything was negative, and he could still remember positive moments. This describes that individuals can see the positive out of everything instead of having negativity and envy.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described how he became optimistic seeing how righteous Christians persevered through everything with zeal and courage. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described how righteous individuals saw the good and positive out of everything. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described how he received letters from righteous individuals who had been in gulag and described that their letters were positive and free from self-pity. Instead of being resentful and envious, the righteous individuals described the lessons learned and positivity that allowed them to persevere. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described that righteous individuals were surprisingly cheerful and happy. 

Figures of History and Individualism is written to help us persevere knowing that throughout history there were and are individuals that decide to practice goodness, integrity, ethics, and righteousness. While there may be temporary lies told about the need to practice sin and idol worship, we learn that there are individuals that have resisted and keep resisting against temptations and persevere through persecution. We can find encouragement and motivation in individuals that chose to persevere with kindness, genuine empathy, wisdom, and fidelity to GOD Almighty instead of giving in to sin and idolatry.