How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Paragraph). We used H.T. Willetts's translation.
Quote #1
After nineteen years inside, the foreman wouldn't hustle his men out a minute too early. When he said "Out," you knew there was nothing else for it. (140)
We hear many times throughout the book how the foreman of Gang 104 is a really good foreman. He's definitely like the father-figure of the gang.
Quote #2
Nowadays you had more to say to Kildigs, the Latvian, than to the folks at home.
They wrote twice a year as well, and there was no way in which he could understand how things were with them. (224-5)
Shukhov's odd connection/disconnection with his home is a running theme in the book. He definitely still has ties to his home and longs for it, but his life in the camp has also created a huge distance between him and his home. His gang is more like family now than his own family.
Quote #3
Outwardly, the gang all looked the same, all wearing identical black jackets with identical number patches, but underneath there were big differences. You'd never get Buynovsky to sit watching a bowl, and there were jobs that Shukhov left to those beneath him. (87)
As within any family, there are roles that people play, and a sort of hierarchy at work. Shukhov's work gang is no different in that respect, though the hierarchy and the competition are much more pronounced than in the average Leave it to Beaver clan.