Essay

Shawshank Redemption Essay
In 1947, banker Andy Dufresne is convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, based on circumstantial evidence, and is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences atShawshank State Penitentiary. Andy quickly befriends contraband smuggler Ellis "Red" Redding, an inmate serving a life sentence. Red procures a rock hammer for Andy, allowing him to create small stonechess pieces. Red later gets him a large poster of Rita Hayworth, followed in later years by images of Marilyn Monroe and Raquel Welch. Andy works in the prison laundry, but is regularly assaulted bythe "bull queer" gang "the Sisters" and their leader Bogs.
In 1949, Andy overhears the brutal chief guard Byron Hadley complaining about taxes on a forthcoming inheritance and informs him about afinancial loophole. After another vicious assault by the Sisters nearly kills Andy, Hadley severely beats Bogs resulting in Bogs being sent to another prison. Andy is not attacked again. Warden SamuelNorton meets with Andy and reassigns him to the prison library to assist elderly inmate Brooks Hatlen, a pretext for Andy to manage financial duties for the prison. His advice and expertise are soonsought by other guards at Shawshank and from nearby prisons. Andy begins writing weekly letters to the state government for funds to improve the decrepit library.
In 1954, Brooks is freed on parole, butunable to adjust to the outside world after 50 years in prison, he hangs himself. Andy receives a library donation that includes a recording of The Marriage of Figaro. He plays an excerpt over thepublic address system, resulting in his receiving solitary confinement. After his release, Andy explains that he holds onto hope as something that the prison cannot take from him, but Red dismisses theidea. In 1963, Norton begins exploiting prison labor for public works, profiting by undercutting skilled labor costs and receiving kickbacks. He has Andy launder the money using the alias "Randall...