Hope In The Shawshank Redemption

“Hope is the only thing stronger than fear”. Hope was highlighted a great amount in the film “The Shawshank redemption” directed by Frank Darabont. In this essay I will be analysing how the sense of hope portrayed in the film was developed to show a particular purpose, the importance of rehabilitation. Hope was shown all throughout the film and to support this I will use examples that show the gradual development of hope in the film.

In the beginnings of the film, hope was spoken of like it was feared. It was spoken as though even the slight thought of it was deadly and could kill in an instant. Everyone but Andy believed that hope was simply bad news. In the film Andy brings up the subject of hope. Red instantly shoots him down by saying “Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane”. At this point Red

It is the smallest of actions which create the most hope. Andy, being one of the very few sources of hope for those in Shawshank. He was clearly more optimistic than the rest and he was a lot smarter too. It was when Andy locked himself in a room and turned the music of Mozart on. He then turned on the speakers which projected all throughout the prison. From Red’s point of view he described it “For the briefest of moments, every man in Shawshank felt free”. This brief moment of freedom showed the prisoners of Shawshank what it was like to feel free again. That moment of freedom gave them hope. That one small action showed the hopeless prisoners that there is more out there. Even though it was only a little hope, it did more for them than the whole time they had been imprisoned at Shawshank. Shawshank drained them of everything. They all had potential to rehabilitate but nobody helped them to do this besides Andy. They stayed to their old ways and thought themselves as being the man they were and it always would be that way for them. They didn’t think redemption would ever be an option for them and they were completely