Analysis: The Shawshank Redemption

Everyone has a burning desire in the pit of their stomach, as life goes on, the desire to be in a place where they feel they’ve reached their maximum potential. Most individuals are stuck in a place that they wish they could change at some point in their life, and they set goals for themselves in order to achieve what their heart desires. Whether they see themselves in a mansion or just living out their days in a vacation home off the beach, it doesn’t really matter as long as the work they put in satisfies them. In The Shawshank Redemption, the Pacific Ocean is where our main character Andy’s heart lies, and he shows us that with enough time and persistence against opposition, a person can regain control and pursue their dreams. In prison

When Andy is first introduced to Red he understands that Red’s the guy to talk to if you need something, so Andy begs Red to get him a rock hammer To try and distract himself from his current situation. Andy finds rocks in the courtyard and turns to his old hobby of rock shaping and it reminds him what it was like to be out, doing this gives him courage and he’s determined to keep moving forward with his plans. It’s ironic because his rock shaping gave him an escape for awhile, but he was also using his rock hammer to literally dig an escape tunnel out of the prison. This proves that with enough time you can chip away any obstacle that comes into the way of your

When he tells Andy about Elmo Blatch it gives Andy hope, because he can use Tommy as a witness to prove his innocence and eventually be free from the prison without having to continue his hole behind the wallpaper. Tommy brought unrealistic hope to Andy because when the Warden discovers Tommy’s story he immediately wants Tommy checked out. Officer Hadley takes out Tommy as instructed by the Warden and it leaves Andy with no proof of Elmo Blatch’s existence. The Warden made sure Tommy had no way of taking Andy away from him because Andy was laundering money for him and he knew the money would be safe as long as Andy was present in the prison. Of course the Warden would want Andy there because Andy was making him so much more money than before, illegal or not. To take his mind off of it Andy moves forward quickly and focuses on sending letters to the state, and ultimately makes the best library in all of New England. Even when Andy’s faced with opposition, he still holds onto the hope he has and constantly reminds himself of the hole behind his