Although Solzhenitsyn's work deals with politics from One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovichto The Gulag Archipelago, perhaps what has been most detrimental to his reputation is his political statements. After being expelled from the Soviet Union and seeking refuge in Europe and the United States, he constantly criticized the West. Invited to give the commencement speech at Harvard University, Solzhenitsyn attracted one of the largest crowds in Harvard's history and was televised nationally. In his address, entitled "The World Split Apart," he called for unification, but his remarks seemed to create new splits and his speech was highly criticized.

Solzhenitsyn is a mathematician and physicist by training and a writer by profession. When asked to speak, however, he inevitably poses questions on politics and philosophy and freely gives his own answers. Although many of his criticisms are valid, he has a xenophobic vision...