shawshank Flashcards
red and andy
… Like He Had On An Invisible Coat That Would Shield Him From This Place.” Red
Many of the inmates thought Andy had an air of superiority around him. Red sees Andy is not a haughty individual trying to be aloof. Andy is a more reserved and thoughtful individual with a quiet, powerful strength inside of him. Though Andy enters Shawshank as a young man, he enters prison holding onto a piece of the outside and the hope that he will make it beyond those walls. The reason he seems like such an unusual creature to Red and the other inmates is that “hope” is not something they often see in Shawshank.
We Trust This Will Fill Your Needs. We Now Consider The Matter Closed. Please Stop Sending Us Letters.” Andy
For six years, Andy wrote a letter a week asking for books and other library materials to be donated to the prison. After six years, Andy finally got a response, along with many books and other materials. Part of the response letter is hilarious, as the tone is formal and professional, yet they are aggravated with the weekly letters Andy has been sending. Unable to ignore him any longer, they give in and provide what he asked for, not out of generosity or sympathy, but to get the letters to stop. Having the resources necessary to build a proper library–especially one in honor of Brooks–is a wonderful thing that Andy made happen through his persistence
“That’s The Beauty Of Music. They Can’t Get That From You.” andy
After Andy’s moment of rebellion where he played opera for the entire prison, he is, of course, punished for his malfeasance. So once he has completed his time in solitary and sees his friend, Red, again, he explains to him just why he did it. This quote is his response, and he further explains that it has everything to do with hope, which is a huge theme of the entire film. Andy’s hope can’t be taken away from him by the prison, which is exactly what the music represents.
“That’s Where I Want To Live The Rest Of My Life — A Warm Place With No Memory.” andy
Most prisoners have a dream of what they will do or would do if they get out of prison one day. So, of course, Andy had a very specific dream of his own should that happen for him, and it had to do with the Pacific. Even though Andy is innocent of his crimes, he is a man filled with guilt over the way he lived his life before. The fact that he seeks out a place with “no memory” speaks to him wanting to put his past, including his time in Shawshank, behind him and start a new life free from those memories.
“Every Man Has His Breaking Point.” red
The shocking death of Tommy in The Shawshank Redemption is a turning point for Andy. Not only was his friend murdered, but it also signifies that Norton will go to drastic lengths to ensure that Andy never leaves Shawshank. Red sees this moment as a breaking point for Andy, and it is in many ways. But instead of Red’s fears that Andy would lose hope, Andy instead uses his hope to break out of prison.
“Bad Luck, I Guess. It Floats Around.” andy
It’s folksy, but there is an air of darkness to it, a lingering sort of melancholy about how, even though the events that put Andy in Shawshank are seemingly random, it still felt like he was singled out as all of that bad luck was meant for him and him alone.
“The Funny Thing Is, On The Outside, I Was An Honest Man.”
Andy Dufresne goes into Shawshank as an honest and law-abiding man, even if the state doesn’t think he is, but it’s inside the walls where he really learns how to be a criminal. He takes on the task of laundering the warden’s dirty money, making sure that the government never has any clue. Of course, this all comes in handy once Andy makes his escape, and he has an available alias with several bank accounts in his name. Of course, the audience can forgive him for those crimes.
“I Have To Remind Myself That Some Birds Aren’t Meant To Be Caged.” red
Andy’s escape is one of the most crowd-pleasing moments in movie history, but there is some sadness in the scenes that follow as Red admits to missing his friend. This is one of the most heartbreaking yet poignant lines in the film and is taken almost verbatim from King’s writing. There is so much truth in this statement. Sure, people can be happy when they let something beautiful go free, but there is still the sense of sadness knowing that when it is gone, life just feels like it is missing something.
“Get Busy Living, Or Get Busy Dying.” andy
The message of this line is clear: life is spent going through the motions and waiting around for something to happen, or something is made to happen. Its poignancy cannot be understated. Andy finally taking his life back into his own hands
Foreshadowing
When the Warden tells Andy that “Salvation lies within” while inspecting his Bible (with, unknown to the warden, the rock hammer hidden inside), this foreshadows Andy’s escape.
Paradox
The content of the character of the warden and Andy are diametrically opposed to each other: the warden is supposed to be honest and fair, but is instead dishonest and ruthless; Andy, a prison inmate, is supposed to be dishonest and cruel but is instead honest and kind. This role reversal creates a paradox.
The Power of Hope
Hope, more than anything else, drives the inmates at Shawshank and gives them the will to live. Andy’s sheer determination to maintain his own sense of self-worth and escape keeps him from dying of frustration and anger in solitary confinement. Hope is an abstract, passive emotion, akin to the passive, immobile, and inert lives of the prisoners. Andy sets about making hope a reality in the form of the agonizing progress he makes each year tunneling his way through his concrete cell wall. Even Andy’s even-keeled and well-balanced temperament, however, eventually succumb to the bleakness of prison life. Red notes that Tommy Williams’s revelation that he could prove Andy’s innocence was like a key unlocking a cage in Andy’s mind, a cage that released a tiger called Hope. This hope reinvigorates Andy and spreads to many of the other inmates in the prison. In his letter addressed to Red, Andy writes that “hope is a good thing,” which in the end is all that Red has left. Red’s decision to go to Mexico to find Andy is the ultimate proof of Red’s own redemption, not from his life as a criminal but from his compromised state, bereft of hope and with no reason to embrace life or the future. Red’s closing words, as he embarks tentatively onto a new path, show that hope is a difficult concept to sustain both inside the prison and out.
He describes Andy’s escape as a kind of inevitability, something that is “meant to be,” and marvels at the fact that Andy was destined to escape imprisonment.
some birds aren’t meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright. And when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up does rejoice.”-red
Andy alleges that hope is the most important thing, the thing that can stay with someone even through the hardest of moments. Here, Andy outlines his more optimistic perspective to his friend.
Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” - Andy
Which quote reflects the theme of hope and resilience in the face of adversity? It suggests that one should either actively pursue a fulfilling life or succumb to despair and stagnation
Get busy living or get busy dying.”-Andy
