Solzhenitsyn’s "The Gulag Archipelago" is one of the most important books in the history of literature and world affairs, according to John Kirshon in his article "Solzhenitsyn Publishes 'The Gulag Archipelago'; Shocking Disclosure of Soviet Prison System". Full of testimonies and documentaries, it is the voice of the Soviet labor system's victims. It is a book of the people, but at the same time, it's also a book with high historical importance, because its author describes the years of suffering in camps. He also expresses political views and argues against the dependence of the Soviet system's on this forced labor. Solzhenitsyn criticizes Stalin, his predecessors, and the system in general, based on his personal experience along with historical evidence and testimonies.
Solzhenitsyn's work is a history of the political system and the people of Russia between 1918 and 1956 and also provides evidence of human kindness and compassion during difficult times. Throughout his text, as the author puts it, he hopes to inspire his country and offer Russia the chance to start over again after having been broken spiritually. Solzhenitsyn also hoped to help keep similar situations from occurring in the future.
"The Gulag Archipelago" consists of three volumes and is divided in seven sections. The first book includes the first and second sections and describes the interrogation and imprisonment of the author, who was charged with criticizing Stalin in his written work, and who, with many other people, traveled through prisons toward the Archipelago's labor camps. Solzhenitsyn describes their journey, which was full of torture, disease, execution and death. The first volume ends with the survivors' arrival at the concentration camp.
The second volume contains the third and fourth sections and describes everyday life in the Archipelago. Solzhenitsyn writes about how the prisoners were treated and tortured; the work also asserts that some prisoners were murdered.
The author's third book includes the fifth through seventh sections and describes the prisoners' need to fight back, the gangs they formed, their fights and rebellions, and their release, when they survived long enough to complete their sentences.