The theme I explored in this study was Crisis and Change. This refers to parts in the
texts where a crisis happens and this forces a change in events or in the lives of the
characters. Three of the texts that I will discuss in terms of similarities and
differences in relation to this theme are Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt, The
Shawshank Redemption, directed by Frank Darabont and The Hurricane directed by
Norman Jewison.
The first similarity between texts happens in The Hurricane and The Shawshank
Redemption. The crisis in The Hurricane is when Rubin Carter is wrongly accused of
a crime he didn’t commit and the same thing happens in The Shawshank
Redemption to Andy Dufresne. In The Hurricane, Rubin is given a life sentence “You
are sentenced to be imprisoned for the remainder of your natural life”. Rubin
maintains his innocence throughout the film. This is also displayed in the Shawshank
Redemption when Andy says to the prosecution attorney “Since I am innocent of this
crime, sir, I find it decidedly inconvenient that the gun was never found”. The change
that happens as a result of this crisis, is that both Rubin and Andy are put in prison, a
completely new and unfamiliar environment. This shows that crisis and change go
hand in hand and where there is one, the other will usually occur.
The second similarity between texts happens between Angela’s Ashes and The
Shawshank Redemption. The crisis in Angela’s Ashes is the poverty stricken
environment in which Frank is being raised, “When I look back on my childhood I
wonder how I survived it all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood”, but despite
this he remained positive and stayed hopeful. This is also shown in The Shawshank
Redemption with Andy staying hopeful even though he is wrongly accused of
murdering his wife and her lover. “Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things,
and no good thing even dies.” The change that happened as a result of this crisis
was that in the end, they both got what they wanted with Frank moving to America
and becoming a teacher, and Andy escaping prison and starting a new life in Mexico.
This shows that the outcome of a crisis is not always a negative one.
The first difference between the texts happens between The Hurricane and The
Shawshank Redemption. In The Hurricane, Rubin is wrongly accused due to racial
prejudice. Before the arrest is made, a police officer says “We are looking for two
negroes in a white car” to which Rubin replies “any two will do?” implying that the
police officer has racist motives. In The Shawshank Redemption the verdict is made
not because of racism, but because all the evidence points to him. The attorney of
the prosecution quotes the neighbours statement of overhearing Andy saying to his
wife “I’ll see you in Hell before I see you in Reno.” The change that happened as a
result of this was that in the case of Rubin Carter is that his verdict came about due
to a corrupt justice system whereas in Andy’s case, there was no made up evidence,
only an incorrect verdict by the jury. This shows that Rubin’s trial was more unfair
than Andy’s.
The second difference between the texts happens between The Hurricane and
Angela’s Ashes. In The Hurricane, Rubin blames while people and racism for the
crisis he is going through, “Everything I had lost, I had lost at the hands of white folk”.
However, in Angela’s Ashes, Frank does not blame anyone for his plight “I know
when Dad does the bad thing. I know when he drinks the dole money and Mam is
desperate and has to beg . . . but I don't want to back away from him and run to
Mam.“ The change that happened as a result was that in the case of The Hurricane
is that Rubin is sent to prison with a growing hate for white people, but it’s the the
help of white people that save him in the end, whereas in the case of Angela’s
Ashes, Frank can’t bring himself to blame his father, even though its obviously his
fault that they are living in such extreme poverty. This shows that it doesn’t matter
who you blame as this does not help in finding a solution to the crisis.