Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption Hope Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Paragraph)

Quote #1

"Looking at them, I felt the warmth that any man or woman feels when he or she is looking at something pretty, something that has been worked and made." (136)

Notice how Big Steve ties hope in with a specific object: The stones Andy polishes. The objects become important because they make someone feel hopeful, not because they're useful on their own.

Quote #2

"I felt my heart leap up in my chest as it never had since the truck drove me and four others through the gate back in 1938 and I stepped out into the exercise yard." (180)

Red feels hopeful here, and why? He sees a guard getting beaten in a legendary stare-down! This isn't the first time King expresses hope in terms of outlasting someone else, or seeing someone else put in their place. You gotta fight for your right to…keep the hope alive? Sorry Beastie Boys, we tried.

Quote #3

"A sense of his own worth, maybe, or a feeling that he would be the winner in the end or maybe it was only a sense of freedom, even inside these goddamned grey walls." (194)

Red's describing the way Andy seems to feel about the world. Hope becomes the armor he wears to protect himself from prison, like a shining coat of happiness.