Andy Dufresne is an Existential Hero

Existential Hero

Authentic

When Red first layed eyes on him, Andy Dufresne seemed like the average inmate. In fact, Red even bet on Andy Dufresne to be incapable of lasting one night in Shawshank! However, Red was proven to be very wrong about Andy as he surpassed many expectations and surprised many people with his intelligence and his existential ways. Andy Dufresne refuses to be defined by anything other than himself and doesn't leave his future in the hands of others, thus making him an existential hero.

Existential Hero

The biggest existential trait Andy possesses is authenticity. Andy stays true to himself, no matter the external pressures. He refuses to be defined by the institution, and goes to great length to prevent this. Andy foils against Brooks, who goes to extreme measures by almost killing his friend in order to stay in in the institution. Brook's "normal" is his institutionalized life in Shawshank, as opposed to Andy as he finds ways of bringing his "normal" into Shawshank. He continues his hobby for rocks, he keeps himself busy by making a new library, he helps Tommy achieve a level of education, and plays music throughout all of Shawshank, momentarily freeing every last prisoner. He also finds a way to do his banking in the prison, even further "normalizing" his prison life. Andy lives by his own rules and won't let anyone make choices for him, making him an authentic character.

Andy Dufresne is an authentic character, who constantly surprises his fellow inmates by his existential choices. He keeps himself busy by helping others, without expecting anything in return. He understands his actions can have consequences, and he faces them honorably. Most of all, he refuses to be defined by the institution and doesn't leave his future in the hands of, specifically, the warden. He lives by his own ways, and brings these ways into the prison. Andy Dufresne is therefore, an existential hero.

Man-ness

Andy often showed his man-ness by not giving into authority, or "the sisters". He always puts up a fight towards Bogs and "the sisters", until he ultimately won by using his intelligence. His man-ness also is clearly shown in his confrontation with the warden, when the warden refuses to re open Andy's case. He calls the warden "obtuse", and doesn't back down to his authority. He doesn't give into people unless he sees fit, further proving his existentialism.

Consequences/ Dreadful freedom

Andy Dufresne takes responsibility and accepts consequences for his actions, which is a big part of existentialism. This is seen when he plays the music for all of Shawshank to hear, and refuses to open the door for the guards. He knows there will be consequences, and takes them honorably, calling it the "easiest time [he] ever spent". He also takes the consequences after calling the warden "obtuse", and not backing down from it. After his time in solitary confinement, he once again demonstrates his acceptance for consequences when he plans his escape, as he doesn't know if he will be able to make it and is fully prepared to take the risk anyways. He also believes his time in Shawshank was his consequence for "killing" his wife, although not literally. This is very existential of him.

Meaning within oneself

Andy finds meaning in life by helping people, without expecting anything in return. We see this with the banking agreement, where although Andy doesn't drink, he demanded beer for his friends while they are working. The library was also a voluntary purpose in Andy's life, of which all the prisoners benefited from, yet Andy again wanted nothing in return. Andy continued with this meaning in life, and made it his goal to help Tommy pass an educational test. Once again, Andy asks for nothing in exchange for helping Tommy. Andy finds a meaning in life and keeps himself busy without a need for any kind of payment, which is very existential. On top of Andy's different methods of giving his life a meaning, he also constantly talks about going away to Mexico when he is out of Shawshank. Some may argue that hope is not an existential trait, however Andy doesn't see it as hope. He sees it as a reality and takes risks with known consequences in order to achieve this.

Andy Dufresne is an Existential Hero

By Maud Linders