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http://www.edvardmunch.org/

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http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2011/03/10/hitler-vs-stalin-who-killed-more/

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http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history

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https://youtu.be/AXui3RR3NOg

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http://bit.ly/2kl4Rvg
http://bit.ly/2kubIBB
http://bit.ly/2k5awrM

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Excluding the struggle of having to come to terms with their likely inevitable deaths, one of biggest internal issues faced by the people in the Soviet camp comes with the signing of the papers. After some time in the camps, the prisoners are brought before the NKVD with an offer: the NKVD will give anyone who signs better living conditions - more food, less abuse, and special privileges, such as being allowed to visit a small town to shop or use the post office (all supervised, of course). The catch? Signing condemns them to 25 years of prison, to be served in the form of labor at the camp.

People are tempted - they're already slaves, so why not be a little better off? However, it is unlikely that signing is worth the costs. Lina's mother manages to convince people against signing for a while, but eventually, people start to give in and sign their lives away. Their experiences had drained them so much that they had lost all hope for the idea of ever getting back home. The fact that this choice becomes a reality for several of the prisoners shows their inner deterioration; the NKVD have worked them to death, but they're still alive. They've become empty. This decision of whether to sign or not becomes torturous for many of the prisoners, until they eventually can't take it anymore, and they give up their life to Stalin.

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Other than the obvious problem of fighting for her life in a slave camp, one of the biggest conflicts Lina is faced with is the task of finding her father. Starting the moment they get pushed into different cattle cars, Lina wants nothing more than to discover if her father is still alive, where he is, and what he did to condemn him and his family to life in the camps.

To do this, Lina uses her biggest skill: art. Her father would be able to recognize her work and illegible signature. She draws, hiding messages in her pieces. Lina finds ways to pass on her work, hoping it may someday reach her father. Because of her insistence on finding out about her father, Lina takes major risks, which, if discovered by the NKVD, could mean the punishment and probable death of herself and those close to her.

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One minor character in the novel that has major importance is Mr. Stalas, who Lina most commonly refers to simply as "the bald man." Lina first meets him on their cattle car; he jumped out of the car soon after they started journey, falling to the pavement and breaking his leg, leaving him crippled. The NKVD do not provide any medical help for him. Throughout the entirety of his times being described in the novel, he is always incredibly negative; he constantly talks of how they are hopeless and will surely die. He becomes disliked by most people because of his incessant negativity and lack of hope for their situation.

Mr. Stalas serves as a voice of reason for the reader; he can see past the false hopes that all of the other captured victims are consumed with. He offers the realistic view on their situation; even though his negativity is disheartening, it serves the purpose of hinting at what bad things may come.