Assignment 2 -- part 2

Another way to show what people’s thinking is to through films, and sometimes it can even change one’s life. The Shawshank Redemption is always my favorite. The Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American prison drama film, written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the Stephen King novella, Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. The film talk about a young banker named Andy Dufresne is wrongly convicted of murdering his wife and her lover based on strong circumstantial evidence and is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences at "Shawshank" State Penitentiary in Maine. After several weeks’ prison’s life, Andy gradually becomes acquainted with Red's circle of friends, and Red himself, who is known for cleverly smuggling in contraband. “Red” is a very funny character in this film, only because he can get whatever you want, but also he has been rejected for parole for so many times, no matter what he says to the parole officers. After a month of adjusting to his new life, Andy approaches Red and asks him to get a rock hammer, originally intending to pursue a hobby of rock collecting and some big posters. No one knows what Andy wants to do, since it is impossible to escape the prison by using only a small hammer. Years after years, Andy’s life in prison changed a lot, but he still can prove he is innocent for he did not kill his wife, until a young prisoner named Tommy Williams enters Shawshank. Tommy tells Andy that he knows a crazy guy that kills Andy’s wife, which gives Andy some hopes, so Andy went to see the warden to get some help. However, because Andy helps the warden to wash bribe money, the warden does not want Andy go out, so the warden kills Tommy. That makes Andy feel hopeless, he does not want to stay in prison anymore for other’s guilt, and he asks one of his friends for a long string. Everyone in Shawshank feel sorry about Andy, because they think Andy will probably kill himself. Andy disappears after that night; because he digs a hole years by years in his wall and use a big poster to hide the hole, when the warden finds the hole, everything is too late. Finally, Andy does not want to stay after Tommy’s death, so he chooses to leave. The movie strongly tells us, everything is possible if we keep doing it. “Red” in the film said that dig a hole to prison break will take two hundred years, but Andy only uses eighteen years.

I used to be a very cowardly man. I can hardly make some decisions, I even do not have any idea for staying in China or going aboard after I graduate from high school. There are a lot of students who were forced to study at Michigan State University, because their parents sent them here. However, they actually want to stay at home because there is no place like home. I chose this school by myself. At first, I just chose some universities all over the world, and never thought that it would be very hard to be an international student. However, in the last month that I have been here, I felt panic. I felt badly about the choice I made. I wanted to move back to china, and study there, but it was too late. My father noticed I had a problem. My father pointed at a small stalactite and asked me; “Do you know why this stalactite is very small?” I looked up at the top of the cave and noticed that there was some water that kept dropping on the rock. The rock became small because the water dropped on it every day. I told my father this guess. My father nodded and said; “Small drips can even destroy a big rock, why you do not think you can beat the problems in your life? If you have already made the decision, be a man, keep going on. Like the drips, you will finally destroy a big rock!” After that talk with my father, I went back to watch The Shawshank Redemption one more time, I think it totally matches what my father talks to me. Few days after, I made the diction to come to U.S, and now I still believe, no matter what hard problems make me want to change my original idea, I will still definitely keep moving forward, like Andy in Shawshank Redemption and the water drips, never give up. This changed my life recently, because Andy’s sprit. It is like a compass, it leads the way for my life. When we see a thing deeply, it will teach us something useful, like this movie, The Shawshank Redemption.