The first instance of how hope is developed in The Shawshank Redemption is perhaps the most prominent of all, which is the 'Marrige of Figaro' scene. In this scene, which occurs halfway throughout the movie, Andy Durfresne is granted access to the Warden's office to complete ledger work due to his (Andy's) financial background. When the guard supervising him leaves for a moment, Andy begins to play a vinal record of Mozart over the prison PA system. As the music plays, prisoners and guards all stop what they are doing to stare at the PA speaker in shock. A quote from Red exemplifies how exceptional this music is for the prisoners; “It was like some beautiful little bird flapped into our drab little cage and made those walls dissolve away, and for the briefest of moments, every last man in Shawshank felt free.” For a small period of time, they all experience a piece of freedom which renews hope buried within
In conversations throughout the film, Andy proclaims his innocence. Ellis ‘Red’ Redding (Morgan Freeman), a Shawshank prisoner since the age of 19 and the leading entrepreneur inside the prison, narrates the story. Red and his fellow inmates watch as a busload of new prisoners arrive inside Shawshank. Bets are made on which ones will cry their first night and who will not. Red wagers that the tall, lean, baby faced guy, Andy Dufresne, will cry.
The Shawshank Redemption is about Andy Dufresne's time inside Shawshank Prison, but more importantly freedom and the hope that he always held on to. Through the use of dialogue and symbolism, Frank Darabont is able to effectively communicate the importance of hope and freedom to the audience. Music becomes a recurring symbol for freedom for the prisoners of Shawshank. In one scene, we watch as Andy locks himself inside the Warden's office and plays a record over the loudspeaker. At that moment, all of the prisoners stop what they're doing and just listen.
The visual symbol of the harmonica symbolises the ideas of the hope and freedom the main character- Andy had in music. The harmonica symbolises how Andy passes these ideas into another main character- Red. With the use of these three visual symbols, the films ideas were developed clearly. An important visual symbol were the posters Andy had in his cell which helped develop the ideas of freedom and secrets. From the moment Andy found the stone in his cell could be easily chipped away he knew it was his way out of Shawshank and his way out to freedom.
When the death penalty was no more the jail suffered overcrowding which led to riots, escapes, and prison guards were attacked. The Pennsylvania Prison Society and the Philadelphia Society for Alluarting Misers of Public Prisons stepped in to solve the overcrowding issue by building Pittsburgh Western Penitentiary and Cherry Hill Prison. Today there are 1,200 prisons in the United States and overcrowding is still an issue. Lawmakers believe in three main goals of the correctional system: 1. Punish those who are found guilty of the
At night, mosquitoes constantly bit the soldiers and they had to take pills everyday to prevent mosquito transmitted diseases. So, in order to combat such things, each soldier had to put a mosquito net over his bed. Also, each camp ran rampant with rats and other vermin. At one point, a mate of Richard’s had to smash a rat with a book of his, and Perry said it was “the biggest rat he’s ever seen”. On top of all that, there were bigger pest problems.
The scene occurs in a dark prison cell. Freedom is also shown by the light that shines out through the little window, when the fowl is set free. We understand the importance of freedom when the fowl goes out towards the light or freedom and is no more limited within the pocket of the old man also kept in prison. In the roof scene of the film, drinks and outfits, such as the alcohol and overalls, help demonstrate freedom. Andy makes an agreement with the prison security officers to give all his co-workers alcohol, as they are all just like him.
Shawshank Redemption won an Academy award for best picture and best actor which was given to Morgan Freeman. Andy Dufrense seemingly the cold killer of his cheating wife and her lover, sits in court getting question by the court prosecutor answering them emotionless and nonchalant. The judge sentence Andy to two life terms in Shawshank Prison. When Andy reaches Shawshank he immediately catches the attention of the prison veteran “Red”. One day while in the prison yard Andy approaches Red for a small rock hammer, Red is the “Sears” of the prison, not only did Red gain a customer that day but he also gained a friend for life.
While Andy is serving his sentence he comes across a man named Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding, played by Morgan Freeman. Ellis is serving a life sentence and has become well customed to the traditions during his imprisonment. Red’s area of expertise inside the prison is the “import/export” business. Red’s first impression of Andy is that he is quite different from the average inmate, which of course works against Andy’s favour. As the movie continues Andy begins to befriend many of his fellow prisoners as well as the guard in order to reap the benefits only they could provide.
Paul Edgecombe and Brutus Howell (other prison guards) greatly dislike Percy Wetmore as he is arrogant and cocky and mistreats the prisoners. Percy calls the prison “a bucket of piss to drown rats in” and he believes he has authority over the other guards as his aunt is the governor’s wife and so looks down on everyone else. To ensure a quick death in the electric chair, a wet sponge is placed on the head to direct the electricity straight to the brain. During Eduard Delacroix’s execution Percy decides to purposely not wet the sponge causing Delacroix to endure a long, painful death. An aural technique used to create a strongly negative mood in the scene of Eduard Delacroix’s execution was sound and music.