Shawshank Redemption
Watching Shawshank Redemption was not only a fantastic journey, but it also made me question some of my beliefs regarding inmates. Andy Dufresne’s character conveyed a kind spirit even though the people he was surrounded by were anything but. Red’s mockery of the behavior assessment committee was especially poignant of what perspective of prisoners. Though I had never considered prisoners to be drastically different people, I had never realized how similar they were to us. The idea of contrasting the physical imprisonment and mental imprisonment had really led me to understand Andy Dufresne’s resilience and why he had done some of the things he did. His audacious actions only proved that being in prison did not mean that you were imprisoned.
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Though I do not have personal experiences in prison life, there are moments where I felt imprisoned.
Watching ShawshankRedemption and being forced to write about it had made me ask questions I rarely ask about a movie before. What was the director attempting to convey? What were some of the symbolisms? Were there philosophies inherent in some of the character’s actions or interactions? These questions had challenged me to engage in a movie through literature. Thinking about what the movie contained and then writing down my thoughts and feeling had made me a more focused writer. I saw the various aspects running through the movie, and I pinpointed examples of reoccurring themes. Because I stopped watching the movie purely to enjoy it and started, instead, to analyze the movie’s many components, I had organized my writing in the same manner. For example, when I had to focus on symbolism, I had re-played many scenes where I became familiar with some objects. I attempted to seek symbols in every scene and interpret their meaning. To me, this was an important progression of my analytical skills as I could more easily separate individual parts of what I read or see and write about
that.
Furthermore, one important thing I learned through this assignment and watching Shawshank Redemption is patience. In my younger years, when I read literature or watched an extremely boring film, I was impatient in my understanding. I prematurely assessed literature or films without giving them time to develop. Shawshank Redemption is not a film that one could watch and understand within the first viewing. Andy’s character and Red’s are both linear progressions; they develop as the film progresses and their actions also help unfold the progressions of the story. As Andy takes on more goals in prison life, the prison inmates are also changing. For example, when Andy started his mission to fund the library, prisoners started read more with some even attempting to obtain a GED certificate. I had learned to read and watch everything until the end and then analyze as it completes. My writing has improved significantly because I understand beginnings and endings easier. In an essay, I contrive to write my introductions with a set path (body paragraphs) that leads to a more concise conclusion.
Though I do not have personal experiences in prison life, there are moments where I felt imprisoned.
Watching ShawshankRedemption and being forced to write about it had made me ask questions I rarely ask about a movie before. What was the director attempting to convey? What were some of the symbolisms? Were there philosophies inherent in some of the character’s actions or interactions? These questions had challenged me to engage in a movie through literature. Thinking about what the movie contained and then writing down my thoughts and feeling had made me a more focused writer. I saw the various aspects running through the movie, and I pinpointed examples of reoccurring themes. Because I stopped watching the movie purely to enjoy it and started, instead, to analyze the movie’s many components, I had organized my writing in the same manner. For example, when I had to focus on symbolism, I had re-played many scenes where I became familiar with some objects. I attempted to seek symbols in every scene and interpret their meaning. To me, this was an important progression of my analytical skills as I could more easily separate individual parts of what I read or see and write about
that.
Furthermore, one important thing I learned through this assignment and watching Shawshank Redemption is patience. In my younger years, when I read literature or watched an extremely boring film, I was impatient in my understanding. I prematurely assessed literature or films without giving them time to develop. Shawshank Redemption is not a film that one could watch and understand within the first viewing. Andy’s character and Red’s are both linear progressions; they develop as the film progresses and their actions also help unfold the progressions of the story. As Andy takes on more goals in prison life, the prison inmates are also changing. For example, when Andy started his mission to fund the library, prisoners started read more with some even attempting to obtain a GED certificate. I had learned to read and watch everything until the end and then analyze as it completes. My writing has improved significantly because I understand beginnings and endings easier. In an essay, I contrive to write my introductions with a set path (body paragraphs) that leads to a more concise conclusion.