Life in the gulag is very difficult and, with multiple year sentences, the reason to live is a question in every inmates mind. The physical toll of the subzero temperature, sleep depravation, intense physical labor, and malnutrition causes prisoners to wonder if they will ever get out of the perdition. There are also the examples of men who were told they would be out in 5 years and have been in 10 years without being released. The men now have no trust in the government and never believe they will be released. Despite all the hardships the men face and mental struggles they have there is still a glimmer of hope that they will one day be free. They believe they might one day hold their wives in their arms and eat a home cooked meal. They also have become very attached to their squad and feel as close as family. They would not want to hurt their squad's morale or leave a person who acts as a brother or a father behind to suffer alone. Many men have been in the camp for so long they would not know what to do if they were to live another type of life. Many have even lived in other camps and if they were free would not know how to support themselves. Life in the gulags is a daily struggle for survival, but there are reasons for living.
Many men have wives, kids, and other loved ones on the outside. Their only form of communication is a minimal amount of letters and packages. Whenever the men receive the letters from loved ones with goods from the free world the men would remember what it was like at home and yearn to return one day. The thoughts on how life was fill their heads. Their children, who they loved so much, consume their thoughts. As they eat the food sent in the packages they could taste freedom. They remember the nights at home with a plate of hot food and remembered what it was like to have a full stomach. The yearn for home is shown when Shukov remembers what it was like at his village.