Ivan Denisovich ShukhovThe wind whistles as he goes out into the snow. It creaks under his feet. Tremble. It's seventeen below zero outside and the sun hasn't risen yet. In the distance, men march and line up in fives. The guards surround men as a beast surrounds its prey, without forgiveness or mercy. He doesn't feel like working, because his stomach still craves food and the thought that he will still have to face a hard day full of work, orders and intense cold begins to form in his mind. Hope and every means to achieve happiness are lost. He starts going out, trying to avoid any problems, keeping his thoughts to himself; mind your own business. He reaches his seat and gets in line again, trying not to make any mistakes. He hears whispers and chatter everywhere. His eyes lift from the ground scanning the premises to see what is happening. The head guard ridiculously ordered the men to take off their jackets in cold weather to be searched. With no say or power in this, the men accept their "orders" and reluctantly take off the warm outer covering; the only thing separating them from the cold had to be removed. The day had just gotten worse. Men like these were not ordinary men, but were Zeks, prisoners of the gulags in Russia, in Siberia. One man, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, managed to survive this horror thanks to his civil lines and his tiring work habits; his ways have earned him respect as an individual in a society full of other Zeks and as an individual who is part of a team. His survival became inevitable. Being locked up in this gulag, for some, was like a death sentence, while for others it was like a challenge; a goal that needed to be achieved; a peak to conquer; an opponent who... was middle of paper... who helped him survive. Shukhov was truly the perfect man in an unjust world where he possessed all possible traits required for one's survival. The reality is that not everyone will possess these skills and not everyone will be able to act as he did in zek society or within their own teams. Being like Shukhov is no easy task, but through the diverse combination of proper communication and quick thinking within your team and within the zek society, it is possible to survive; without competition, survival would not be guaranteed as people like Shukhov would do anything to ensure they get all the good things. So, what really matters is that competition (adequate competition) is actually what truly ensures and determines survival. All information comes from the book by Ivan Denisovich Shukhov