Actions
Andy's actions were important to the movie because behind all of them there 
was meaning. When Andy was up on the roof top with all the other inmates he 
bribes the guards into letting them have beer by offering to help the guard. 
this action was important because it made all the men feel free and like 
they were real men again. Afterwards Andy plays music through the the 
speakers throughout the prison. This action made all the men feel free and 
like they were outside the prison walls. This action is important because he 
gives all the men hope. Andy helps the guys in the prison a lot in this 
movie. He continuously write letters to get more books for the library and 
then writes to get the library extended. Another important action was 
laundering the prisons bad money out and changing it in to good money. This 
made him important to the prison and to the warden.

Symbolism
In the movie chess is an important symbol. Chess is a game of kings and in 
the movie Andy wants to work his way to the top to become the 'king'. Andy 
starts to play a game with the warden when he begins to do the prisons 
accounts. In the end check mate happens. The warden kills himself and Andy 
escapes. Another important symbol is how Andy digs his way to freedom. This 
is important because it shows us that you must work for what you want. Andy 
wants freedom, therefore he works for it by digging the tunnel.

Personality

 

Andy Dufresne is a very intellegent person who is definately not shy to

express his opinion and intellegence. "Since I am innocent of this crime,

sir, I find it decidedly *inconvenient* that the gun was never found."

 

Andy can also be very mysterious and secretive, for example; although Andy

become very close friends with Red he never ever told him anything about

himself until right before his escape and he certainly never told him of his

plan. This shows that no matter how much Andy trusted someone he would

always keep certain things to himself.

 

Andy was hardworking and very persistant, we see this persistance when Andy

continues to write letters in order to get funding for a brand new library

and books, and after months of one letter a week, he achieves his goal.

Andy's presistance is also what helped him escape.

 

 

 

Relationships

 

Andy and Red become friends almost instantly. It could be said that at first

Andy was only using red as a part of his plan to escape. Andy uses Red to

his advantage by asking him to smuggle him in the tiny rock hammer " I

understand you're a man who knows how to get things." *Red was so nieve that he never

even suspected that Andy would be using the hammer to escape. Although their

relationship began in a business type manner it soon turned into a

friendship and this friendship helped both of the men survive their days at

Shawshank and come out the other side free men.

 

Andy and the warden use each other through out Andy's time at Shawshank.

Andy gets the warden on side by laundering the money so that the bad money

cannot be traced, "*I don't run the scams Red, I just process the profits.

Fine line, maybe, but I also built that library and used it to help a dozen

guys get their high school diploma. Why do you think the warden lets me do

all that?" With the Wardens trust Andy was able to create a false identity

for himself for after he had escaped. The Warden thought that Andy was doing

him a favour and never suspected that he would do him wrong. The Warden

shows how much he needs Andy when he orders the guards to shoot Tommy

because the is afraid that Tommy's testimony might set Andy free.

*

 

Andy see's hope in young Tommy. He feels sorry for the kid and feels that he

can help him out by helping him get an education for when he is finally

released into the outside world. Andy tutors Tommy and helps him to gain

some helpful qualifications in life. Then once Andy discovers that Tommy has

information on his wifes real killer that may set him free he see's more

than a kid. He see's hope in Tommy.

 

Beliefs:

 

Andy was about the only character in ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ that believed in hope and that it would set a man free “That there's a small place inside of us they can never lock away, and that place is called hope.”

. Though his closest friend in prison believed hope will bring great pain, Andy kept on with hope “Hope is a dangerous thing. Drive a man insane

“. This hope in the end turns out for the best for Andy, he achieved his dream that he wished about in prison, and may have given hope to the other prisoners when he wrote. He also had great belief in himself and his skills, he would have had to believe in his skills to be certain he could outsmart the system with money and that his escape plan would work. While in prison Andy’s library and educational set up lead to some prisoners having the chance to achieve some type of qualification that gave them some importance on the outside. His belief in education is showing that knowledge will get you somewhere in life.

Dialogue:

“Salvation lies within” is an important quote near the end of the film - its an ironic quote joined with the film. Spiritual salvation lies within the book of the Bible and Andy’s salvation (the rock hammer) lay within a pouch cut into the pages of the Bible.

There is also irony where Andy requested the rock hammer from Red - where the joke was made about not being able to dig through the walls with it, when in fact that is just what Andy did. “Andy was right. I finally got the joke. It would take a man about six hundred years to tunnel under the wall with one of these [rock hammer].”

When the group of friends were working out on the roof and approached the guard with the intention of helping him out with some financial business, in return beer was asked for the prisoners. “nearly free of charge... I'd only ask three beers a piece for my co-workers, if that seems fair. I think a man working outdoors feels more like a man if he can have a bottle of suds”. Andy showed that he really was a great guy, he wanted him and his friends to feel like free men for once in a long time.