shawshank
The Theme of Death and Resurrection in The Shawshank Redemption
Nick Rissone
Religion in Film
Mr.Whelehan
January 6th 2015 While the film: The Shawshank Redemption, directed by Frank Darabont, may simply seem like a groundbreaking, prison-break movie, there is actually a hidden, yet rather prominent, religious theme. Yes, there are some direct mentions to the bible throughout the film, but there is actually a deeper, religious message. The most apparent theme in the film, would be the idea of death, resurrection, and rebirth and the reactions that occur from this “rebirth.” The film centers around Andy Dufrense, played by Tim Robbins, who we see takes on role of a character much bigger than just a prison inmate. The film opens up by showing our main character Tim has been accused of killing his wife and her lover. As a result, Andy is thrown into Shawshank prison. It is in this early stage of the film where we see a first glimpse of a religious theme; the idea of a metaphorical death. In this case, Andy assumes the role of a Christ figure. Like Christ being accused of preaching blasphemy against the Roman Emperor, something he did not do, Andy is accused of doing something he also did not do. As punishment for his apparent crimes, Christ is put to death, and like him, Andy is put to death, just in a different way. For Andy, his death would be his incarceration at Shawshank. As a reaction of Andy’s “death,” Andy experiences a loss of hope, similarly to the followers of Jesus after his crucifixion. For the main duration of the film, Andy is seen dealing with this lack of hope as a result of this “death,” but as the film progresses, we see how there will eventually be a resurrection, and eventually and complete rebirth. In the last third of the film, the possibility of an escape from Shawshank for Andy becomes a reality. However, religiously speaking, this escape is more of a resurrection. Much like after Christ was put into
Nick Rissone
Religion in Film
Mr.Whelehan
January 6th 2015 While the film: The Shawshank Redemption, directed by Frank Darabont, may simply seem like a groundbreaking, prison-break movie, there is actually a hidden, yet rather prominent, religious theme. Yes, there are some direct mentions to the bible throughout the film, but there is actually a deeper, religious message. The most apparent theme in the film, would be the idea of death, resurrection, and rebirth and the reactions that occur from this “rebirth.” The film centers around Andy Dufrense, played by Tim Robbins, who we see takes on role of a character much bigger than just a prison inmate. The film opens up by showing our main character Tim has been accused of killing his wife and her lover. As a result, Andy is thrown into Shawshank prison. It is in this early stage of the film where we see a first glimpse of a religious theme; the idea of a metaphorical death. In this case, Andy assumes the role of a Christ figure. Like Christ being accused of preaching blasphemy against the Roman Emperor, something he did not do, Andy is accused of doing something he also did not do. As punishment for his apparent crimes, Christ is put to death, and like him, Andy is put to death, just in a different way. For Andy, his death would be his incarceration at Shawshank. As a reaction of Andy’s “death,” Andy experiences a loss of hope, similarly to the followers of Jesus after his crucifixion. For the main duration of the film, Andy is seen dealing with this lack of hope as a result of this “death,” but as the film progresses, we see how there will eventually be a resurrection, and eventually and complete rebirth. In the last third of the film, the possibility of an escape from Shawshank for Andy becomes a reality. However, religiously speaking, this escape is more of a resurrection. Much like after Christ was put into