While in prison Dufresne quickly befriends Ellis Boyd Redding "Red" (refer to Appendix B), is regularly ridiculed by the general prison population, is often assaulted by a gang of in-mates (Sisters) who rape and beat him, and also is hired by the warden of Shawshank prison as his personal accountant, and in exchange for his help with tax evasion, embezzlement, kickbacks and other legal activities, he receives a library job and privileges
As the plot of the film develops so does Dufresne and his intentions which are exposed at the end of the film. "Murder in the First" is also a film which reinforces the themes of injustice and brutality within the penal system. It is about a young man (Henry Young) who is thrown into the "Alcatraz" jail for stealing $5 to feed his starving sister. While in the prison, he is later thrown into the solitary confinement for three years for an escape attempt, which left him mentally and physically impaired (refer to Appendix C). When Young is released out of the hole and returned to the general population of the prison, he "snaps" and plunges a spoon into the artery in the neck of another prisoner (Tommy Lee Jones). Young is then taken to trial for first degree murder, where an inexperienced lawyer (Christian Slater) is assigned as his defense. The film follows events which end in an uplifting and extraordinary relationship between two men; an Alcatraz in-mate and a principled young attorney, who both in different ways triumph over adversity. .
The themes throughout both these films illustrate the same message; corruption and injustice, brutalization of men (guilty or innocent), triumph over adversity and friendships. The "Shawshank Redemption" explores the issues of power, authority and corruption by using Andy to reveal the depth of corruption within the prison system, "Yeah. The funny thing is, on the outside I was an honest man, straight as an arrow.