Hope in the Shawshank Redemption Essay Example

way in. The lighting is also so dark that it is difficult to make out the inmates faces.

This symbolises the way that Shawshank steals your identity, turning you into nothing more than a number. Andy later maintains his hope by working to preserve his identity, through keeping his passion for rocks and geology alive. Lighting is also used to show parts of the movie where Andy’s hope increases. For example when Andy and his mates are on the rook drinking beer, one of the rare moments of happiness and freedom in Shawshank. At this point the lighting is very bright and natural.

This small glimpse of the outside world reinvigorates Andy’s hope and sustains him through his time at Shawshank. “We drank beer like free men” said Red, showing how this small act represented so much freedom for the men. But the light in this scene was bright evening light, the last glimpse of light at the end of the day before becoming darkness. This symbolises that Andy’s hope is only fleeting, soon he must return to the confines of Shawshank, A language feature used in The Shawshank Redemption to show hope is dialogue.

In particular there is Reds voice-over narration, which shows how Reds opinion of hope changes throughout the movie. Andy is a symbol of hope in Shawshank, and it is not only Andy’s hope that grows but he also affects the inmate around him. When Andy first tells Red of his dream to go to Mexico, Red says; “Hope is a dangerous thing. It will drive a man insane, it has no place here. This shows how Red

thought that hope was pointless and futile. This also shows how the prison could take away a man’s hope; even turn him bitterly against the idea of it.

It is only when Andy eventually makes his escape that the inmates realise how truly powerful hope is. When Red is released from prison and make his way to Mexico, he says; “I hope the Pacific is as blue as it is in my dreams. I hope. ” This use of repetition shows the attitude that Andy has instilled in to Red, that hope is the only part of him that can sustain him through his journey, to his dream. This shows a contrast between this and his previous opinion. Another technique used to show hope is music.

This is showed when Andy locks himself in the prison office and plays a Mozart record over the loudspeaker. This has a profound and immediate effect on the inmates of Shawshank. A wide high Angle shot shows all the inmates frozen in place, as if staring up to heaven, the source of the music. This is again a brief moment of freedom for Andy and the whole of Shawshank. This was a moment of rebellion, something out of the ordinary to free himself from the grip that Shawshank has over his life. He said; “That is the beauty of music, that is one thing they cannot take away from you. Andy continues to use music to help others later in the movie when he gives a harmonica to Red. This harmonica is a symbol of the hope that Andy wants to pass on to Fred, the hope

that Andy believes can be found in music. Andy wants it to be a reminder that “there are places that aren’t made of stone. Later in his cell Red begins to play the harmonica.

This shows the change that Andy is having on others, that they are willing to look for hope in places they would not have normally looked. All these aspects of the film come together to portray hope as an inspiring idea. They ome together when Andy finally escapes, showing that Andy’s hope was not in vain, that he finally found the freedom he longed and worked for. Watching this movie, one cannot help but be inspired by Andy’s determination to not lose hope despite the enormous challenges he faced leading up to and during his escape. The movie inspired me to never give up on hope, despite the circumstances we can face. As Andy showed in the movie, hope and also giving hope to others is the most important part of achieving your dream. If Andy had lost hope, he may have never achieved his dream and found freedom.