“Of the Coming of John” and “The Shawshank Redemption”

Introduction

“Of the Coming of John” is the story by W. E. B. Du Bois and “The Shawshank Redemption” is the movie written and directed by Frank Darabont. Both the movie and the story describes the story about the main characters who embarks on a new chapter in their lives. The stories mostly portray the importance of hope. There are many similarities and differences in the story “Of the Coming of John” and the movie “The Shawshank Redemption.”

This paper discusses both the story and the movie. This paper compares and contrasts the movie and the story.

Of the Coming of John

“Of the Coming of John,” is the story written by W. E. B. Du Bois in 1904. Du Bois narrates the story of a young man named John, who brings new insight towards the many challenges for people of color. This story portrays the issues that are social and political. The writer narrates a passionate and warm tale about John who is the main character and lives in a small rural town. This story tells the hardships of the African-American people. The struggles and problems faced by the African Americans are portrayed effectively in this story through the life of John. The restrictions and limitations faced by the people of color are demonstrated in the story. Du Bois demonstrates the progress meaning in the country with so many limitations for the people of the minorities (Walker, 7).

Through this story, one experiences the time of 19th century in the South, at the time of the Negroes flight in America. He reflects that time in “the coming of John,” through the characters in the story. He demonstrates how the neighborhood of the South united together as a family and tried to manage and understand their problems and issues in that difficult era. Altamaha is situated beneath South eastern Georgia's gnarled oaks. This is the area where the sea croons to the sands and the sands listen till they sink half drowned beneath the waters, rising only here and there in long, low islands. The citizens of the Altamaha voted the main character of the story, John, as a good boy. They defined him as fine plough hand, handy in every situation, well in the fields and is respectful and good natured all the time. However, when John's mother insisted in sending John to the school, everyone resisted. The people said that sending him to school will spoil him and ruin him (Du Bois, 45). Those people said this in such a sure way as if they knew exactly what they are talking about even though they have never went to schools themselves. Still, there very many black people who proudly walked him towards the station carrying his bundles and trunks. Their proudness was portrayed through the way they shook his hands, clapped him on his back, and kissed him. It was evident that they felt happy and excited about the fact that one of them was ...