The Theme Of Fortitude In Ruta Sepetys's Between Shades Of Gray

Lithuania's President Antanas Smetona fled from his country while nearly 150,000 troops from the Soviet Union invaded into Lithuania in 1940(Soviet Occupation). This selfish act left families like Lina Vilkas's to be captured helplessly a year later. Ruta Sepetys's book, Between Shades of Gray relates the journey and survival of Lina's family during over a year and half of being in captivity by the Soviets. As I read Between Shades of Gray, I learned that people will show great fortitude in circumstances unimaginable to normal civilians. Andrius' mom really shows fortitude throughout the story while they were still in the lives of the Vilkas's and other prisoners. She prostitutes herself to save her son and other people in the camp. This act shows unimaginable strength from her trying to keep others alive while she is getting wasted away by the soldiers. Unfortunately Lina nearly lost her relationship with Andrius because she
As I read this book, it opened my eyes slightly more than they were. I haven't really ever heard of what Stalin did with his camps. So, this chapter of history was fairly new to me. In schools, Stalin is never really taught about to students. What Hitler did in the 1940s is what is taught to the students. I learned that to be able to survive in that time you had to stay strong and be mentally unbreakable. Pretty much the definition of fortitude*. It is really hard to compare the hardships of the 1940s to those of today's world. But, I am certain that the people who are suffering on the streets of the world today are just as strong as those in the concentration camps from World War 2. I can only hope that I will never have to experience the fortitude these people went