Examples Of Hope In Shawshank Redemption

Hope holds within it the ability to overcome misfortune and hardship, it is a powerful guiding force that brings about a subtle optimism. Shawshank Redemption is a film in which the idea of hope is explored in different ways through the lives of three characters; Andy Dufresne, Red, and Brooks. These men are all serving time in a rough and corrupt prison. Throughout the film, the director demonstrates the idea that hope is important in the lives of individuals because it breeds courage, through which individuals find the will to carry on.
A lack of hope in one’s life leads to fear, without a positive outlook on his life; Brooks found himself becoming increasingly afraid of the future and his impending release from Shawshank. That insurmountable

Hope is Andy's courage. He maintains a heaven inside his mind of what his life is supposed to be, this is appropriately evidenced in scenes such as when he’s put in solitary confinement following his meeting with the warden regarding his proven innocence of his crime. After his release from the ‘hole’, Andy remarks that during his time there Mozart kept him company, stating, “That’s the beauty of music. They can’t get that from you.” referring to music as it becomes and increasing symbol of hope. This is furthermore proven when Andy makes the bold decision to play music to all of the inmates, and Reds statement “those soared, higher and farther than anyone in a grey place dared to dream.” Andy believes that hope comes from within and as long as you guard that hope and hold onto it, it is something that can never be taken from you.Because he knows that he is in fact an innocent man, his courage and determination to be a free is not just about the final result of getting out of prison; it is on a deeper level, about maintaining his self-worth through his commitment to obtaining the courage to pursue his freedom. He doesn’t let hope become something abstract that diminishes as the time passes. He opts instead, to make a physical manifestation of the hope he feels. He begins chiseling rock out of the wall, little by little, one hopeful piece of concrete at a time; he gets closer to freedom. Red reflects on Andy's escape from prison by simply stating that "Some birds are not meant to be caged, their feathers are too bright.” Andy’s mindset throughout the film can best be described by the quote “get busy livin, or get busy dyin.”Andy does not allow prison to deprive him of his intrinsic humanity, dignity, proving that the institution can never truly deprive him of his hope. Andy’s final words of encouragement to Red truly encapsulate his view of the importance of hope throughout his journey, Andy