Summary
In voiceover, Red describes the ways that Andy is different than the other prisoners, remarking on Andy's quiet and guarded demeanor, the fact that he strolls and seems carefree in spite of the horrible conditions of the prison. These qualities endear Red to Andy, and he smiles as he watches Andy walk away.
We see a gangster type unloading bags to be brought into the prison. As the prisoners unload the bags, one of them pulls a book out of it, which he discreetly tucks into his shirt. Red exchanges cigarettes with one of the prisoners for a bundle, which he brings back to his cell. He pulls out the rock hammer that Andy requested, and narrates, "Andy was right. I finally got the joke. It would take a man about six hundred years to tunnel under the wall with one of these," as he looks at how small the hammer is.
That night, in a dark back room while doing a work detail, Andy is apprehended by Bogs, who emerges from the shadows accompanied by several other men, "the Sisters." The men grab him and beat him up as Andy struggles to break free. Red tells us in narration that the Sisters raped Andy that night.
We see Andy with bruises on his face, as Red tells us that the Sisters continually beat and raped him throughout his time in prison. "Sometimes he was able to fight him off, sometimes not," Red says. This goes on for two years, until one day, Norton makes an announcement that workers are needed for the nearby license plate factory for a week's work of outside labor. Red, Andy, and the others in their coterie look at one another and volunteer for the work. Even though hundreds of men volunteer, Red pulls some strings, and his group of friends is chosen for the work.
The men work outside at the license plate factory, as Hadley tells some of the other guards that he has recently come into an inheritance that he is now being taxed on. Andy stares at him, as Red urges him to keep working lest he get in trouble.
As Hadley complains about his predicament, Andy walks towards him and begins asking questions. Hadley becomes incensed and drags Andy towards the edge of the roof, but just before he goes to throw him over, Andy offers him advice on how to hold onto his money, given his expertise as a banker. Hadley is skeptical at first, but when Andy offers to help him set up the account and prepare the forms himself (in exchange for beers for his fellow inmates), Hadley accepts.
We see the inmates sitting on the roof drinking beer. Red narrates that that day on the roof, the men felt like they were free, but Andy sat in the shade watching the men drink the beer. When one of the inmates offers him some beer, he declines, as Red narrates in voiceover, "You could argue he’d done it to curry favor with the guards. Or, maybe make a few friends among us cons. Me, I think he did it just to feel normal again, if only for a short while."
Red and Andy play checkers, as Andy tells him he prefers chess and that he plans to carve his own pieces for a set, "one side in alabaster, the other side in soapstone." Red is skeptical, and Andy says he doesn't have the necessary rocks to make it. "Why'd you do it?" Red asks Andy, but Andy insists that he is innocent. When Andy asks Red what he did, Red tells him he also murdered someone, but is guilty.
We see Andy carving chess pieces in his cell and looking up at two names carved into his wall, "Peter" and "Penny." Taking his rock hammer, he carves his own name into the wall.
Later, the inmates watch Gilda, a movie starring Rita Hayworth. Andy comes in late and sits behind Red just as Rita Hayworth appears in the film. As the men hoot and holler, Andy tells Red that he wants him to get Rita Hayworth. "It'll take a few weeks," Red says jokingly, but assures Andy that he will get her.
As Andy leaves the room, he gets attacked once again by the Sisters. They take him into the room where the movie projector is and begin to attack him, even though Andy tries to fight back with the reels. Bogs pulls out a knife and threatens him with it unless he complies with oral sex. When Andy threatens to hurt him if he has to perform oral sex, the men beat him up badly. Red tells us in voiceover that Andy spent the following month in the infirmary.
The scene shifts and we see Hadley beating Bogs up, kicking him and beating him with a club. Red narrates in voiceover, "Two things happened after that: the Sisters never bothered Andy again, and Bogs never walked again," as we see Bogs being pushed in a wheelchair to a car to be taken to a minimum security hospital.
Wanting to help Andy build his chess set, Red plots with the other men to help him get some rocks to work with. As the men work in the fields, Heywood picks up a rock to bring to Red, but Red disapproves as it is neither alabaster nor soapstone, but "horse shit." By the time Andy gets back from the infirmary, the men have filled his cell with the rocks he wants. Additionally, Red procures a poster of Rita Hayworth for Andy's cell, which he leaves on his bed with a note that reads, "No charge, welcome back."
We see Andy reading his Bible in his cell, when Hadley comes in with another guard and rips apart his room for an inspection. Norton watches as the two guards look around, finding nothing. Norton comments favorably on the fact that Andy is reading his Bible and the two of them exchange favorite passages. Meanwhile, Hadley finds Andy's rock polisher and his chess pieces, but deems them acceptable. As he leaves, Norton hands Andy his Bible and reminds him, "Salvation lies within."
Later, Norton calls Andy to his office and informs him that he is being transferred to the library for work. When he gets to the library, Andy encounters a crow flying around, before Brooks comes out of the back office and welcomes him to his new post. When Andy asks him how long he's been the librarian, Brooks tells him he's been librarian since 1912, and that he's never had an assistant.
Suddenly a guard calls Andy over and asks him for advice on setting up a trust fund for his child's education. It becomes clear that many of the staff at the prison want financial advice from Andy, and that Andy has been promoted so that he can provide these services in the library.
Brooks and Andy eat lunch, as Brooks tells the other inmates about the fact that all the guards want financial planning help from Andy. Andy tells his friends that he wants to get more books for the library, but they are sure that Norton will never take to the idea.
Andy goes to Norton and asks for more books. When Norton says this is impossible, Andy tells him that he will write a weekly letter to the Senate asking for books, with Norton's permission. "Write your letter if it makes you happy, I'll even mail it for you," Norton tells him.
Analysis
Andy is distinguished from the rest of the prisoners by his calm and unbothered attitude. Red describes Andy's subversive attitude when he says, "He had a quiet way about him, a walk and a talk that just wasn't normal around here. He strolled, like a man in a park without a care or a worry in the world. Like he had on an invisible coat that would shield him from this place." The fact that Andy seems unaffected, strangely defended against the horrors of prison, ingratiates him to Red from the start, and forms the foundation of their friendship.
These mysterious and endearing qualities of Andy's are also what make him vulnerable to the ruthlessness of Bogs and the "Sisters." Not long after connecting with Red, Andy is attacked by the brutal gang, and despite his best efforts, the Sisters keep him as their target for a while. Andy is smart and composed, but he is not very tough, and his relative weakness costs him a great deal of his pride while he is imprisoned.
Andy's quiet and calculating demeanor comes to serve him well when he strikes a deal with Hadley about his inheritance. Almost risking his life, Andy insists that he can help Hadley keep all his money without getting taxed on it, and manages to get some goods for his inmate friends in the process. By playing to his strengths as a money man, Andy finds a way to win favor with the authorities and make life a little easier for others at Shawshank.
As we learn in the Hadley deal, Andy is happiest and most contented when he is working hard on behalf of others. After striking the deal with Hadley, the inmates working at the license plate factory earn a day of sitting on the roof drinking cold beers, but curiously enough, Andy does not partake. Red notes in a narration that he thinks Andy struck up the deal "just to feel normal again." By this logic, Andy is most contented when he is performing his job as a businessman and banker, when he is making sure others have what they need, rather than having to worry about himself.
Andy's propensity to give advice and help others ends up serving him at the prison. The help he gives to Hadley ensures Hadley's help in dealing with Bogs and the sisters, and even the cold-hearted Norton takes a liking to Andy when he sees him reading a Bible in his cell. Soon enough, Andy is giving advice to other guards while working in the library, finally enjoying a more steady and reasonable lifestyle in the midst of the horrible prison life.
