At the end of the day, Shawshank is all about hope (which isn't quite the same thing as freedom.). Hope is what gets the prisoners in Shawshank through each day, many times as a direct result of Andy's warm demeanor and inspirational antics. Hope helps us look forward to the next day; it helps us find happiness. Hope is what drives Andy to try to gain his freedom; for him, freedom is the final product of decades of unwavering hope. It's hard for someone not to feel a little more hopeful in his or her life after reading this book. We're pretty sure that's exactly the effect King was going for.
Questions About Hope
- Why don't we ever learn whether or not Red reaches Andy in Mexico? What does that say about the nature of hope?
- What is it about a poster of a pretty girl that can give a prisoner so much hope? (Andy has an answer, but we want to hear you come up with some of your own.)
- How does Andy give Red hope throughout the story?
- Why does Warden Norton want to destroy Andy's hope? What will that do to Andy that bars and walls can't?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
Andy escapes when he loses hope.
Andy's escape is an expression of hope, rather than a reaction to its loss.