As I said yesterday, Different Seasons is a collection of four novellas (mini novels). Three of the four have been made into films, the most well-known of which is The Shawshank Redemption. It took me exactly a day to read each of the first two, and as soon as I'm done writing this post I will start on the third story, The Body.
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption is the story of Andy Dufresne, a young banker who is wrongfully-accused of murdering his wife and her love, and sentenced to life in the fictional Shawshank State Penitentiary. The story is told by Red, an Irish inmate who acts as a go-to guy for the other prisoners, acquiring requested items for a hefty fee of jailhouse wages. Red and Andy become friends early on, and Andy (who had smuggled a good deal of money into prison with him) requests things such as a Rita Hayworth poster and little geologist's hammer, supposedly to work on rocks in his spare time. As the years go on, Andy ingratiates himself with the various wardens and prison guards by offering financial services and money laundering in exchange for a few small perks, such as him maintaining his own private cell and permission to keep the extensive prison library he himself had planned for and arranged over a several-year period. Eventually, a new prisoner arrives at Shawshank and claims to have evidence that would lead to Andy's acquittal, but the warden--knowing that Andy knows too much about his illegal operations--transfers the new prisoner and has Andy placed in solitary confinement in order to put him in his place. Upon his release he confesses to Red that he had a friend arrange a false identity and money for him while he was incarcerated, and gave him clues on where to go should he ever get released. Shortly after this he escapes; upon searching his cell, the warden and his goons discover a large, gaping hole hiding behind Andy's poster, and despite extensive searches Andy is never found. At the end of the story Red, who was shocked to learn that he had been granted parole, takes Andy's advice and follows his clues until he lands in Mexico, and it is implied that the two friends end up being reunited.
Unlike most of Stephen King's works, this is not an outright horror story per se, but there are several instances where some of the characters deal with fear and personal demons of their own. The story takes place over a 27-year period, and during the majority of this time Andy was chiseling the hole in his cell wall and plotting his escape in other ways. Red, always making sure to remind the audience that what he is saying mostly second-hand tales being retold or pure conjecture on his part, suggested that the reason it took him so long to dig that hole and make his get away is because he was constantly afraid, and thus the plot became a psychological game for him rather than a quick getaway. There was always the possibility that, despite all the favors he did the warden and guards, that there would be surprise inspections and his poster would be removed too make sure it was not concealing any type of weapon. Also, there was the fear that even if he had made it out of his cell and into the sewage area, that there would be a metal grate at the end of his escape route, preventing his accent into freedom by only a few inches of metal. Likewise, there was the possibility that his hiding place for the key that would open the locker to his false identity could now be covered in concrete or a building. Andy faces all of these fears and many more, and in the end perseveres against these pressures that would normally break even the strongest of people.
There is a loose continuity shared with the next novella in the collection, Apt Pupil, which will be the topic of tomorrow's review. I will probably come back to this story again in the future, as there is so much to talk about but I don't want to spend too much time going on and on about it. If you haven't read the story and have seen the movie then I strongly recommend that you find a copy of Different Seasons and give it a read. You will not be disappointed.
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