There are a lot of movie characters that inspire people. We are drawn to characters because they have qualities that we seek within ourselves.
Andy Dufresne in my estimation is one of the most inspirational yet underrated characters ever. He is not a superhero with incredible strength or speed or someone that has magical powers.
He is a normal human with incredible intelligence and intuition. Someone who never gives up on his goals and moves forward no matter how tough the circumstance.
Andy goes through a lot in life. He faces injustice because of which he ends up in jail. He is harassed by his gay inmates and is living in one of the harshest conditions one can be.
Yet, he has a vision and a dream. He has hope for the future which keeps him fighting even when it seems like there is no escaping his situation. Through his will, he is able to do the almost impossible – escape the jail and take on a new identity while also taking revenge on the jail warden.
When you look at people who are inspirational figures you see a lot of parallels among them. It is usually those people who kept going and had hope to accomplish their missions.
In life, most people we look at don’t have usually have high hopes about what they can accomplish. Most people conform to conditions that life gives them to deal with but hardly does one ever go out to alter a whole new reality for themselves.
Even though, The Shawshank Redemption is widely considered to be among the best movies ever produced, hardly anyone talks about the character that Andy is.
Andy is the embodiment of sheer will and pursuit. He doesn’t complain about the injustice he has suffered or the bad conditions he is placed in, but is always calculating his next step.
A lot of people would never even think of attempting something like Andy does, but eventually he succeeds in his plan.
So, that was my opinion on Andy Dufresne. Let me know your opinion in the comments below.
