Abstract

Individualism is the most representative core value of American culture. The individual interest, as one of the part of individualism, emphasizes the importance of personal independence and personal freedom. It can be seen as the main factor to determine one’s behavior.
The Shawshank Redemption is one of the most famous films in America. The hero, a protagonist named Andy who has the typical features of American individualism, pursuing the individual freedom, is wrongfully put into the prison without any crime. Although he is in the prison, he still tries his best to get the freedom and to change inmates’ thoughts about freedom. The whole movie is fullfill with American individualism, such as individual freedom and self-independence. The audience can feel a directly expression of individualism in the movie.
This thesis has three chapters. The first chapter introduces the Individualism and the social status of the individualism. The second chapter has three parts: an introduction of The Shawshank Redemption, the American values of individual freedom, and the spirit of self-independence reflected in the movie. The third chapter analyzes the significance of individualism in America. The ultimate goal of the essay is to study the typical performance of individualism in American society and to explore the influence of the individualism on people’s point of view on basic values through the analyses of The Shawshank Redemption.

Key words: individualism; The Shawshank Redemption; freedom

摘  要

个人主义是美国文化的核心价值观，个人利益作为个人主义内容之一，强调了个人独立和个人自由的重要性。它可以看作是决定一个人行为的最主要的因素。
《肖申克的救赎》是美国最著名的电影之一。主人公安迪含冤入狱，他的身上就有很多个人主义的典型特征：渴望个人自由。尽管他身在监狱，但是他想尽办法来取得个人自由，同时设法改变狱友对自由的认定。电影中充满了个人主义的表达，像是对个人自由和个人独立的表达。观众可以通过电影对个人主义有最直接的感受。
这篇论文总共有三章。第一章主要介绍个人主义和个人主义的现状。第二章分为三部分，分别是对电影的介绍、美国价值观的个人自由以及电影中体现的自力更生精神。第三章主要分析了美国个人主义的意义。论文最终目标是通过对《肖申克救赎》中个人主义的分析来研究美国社会中个人主义的典型表现和个人主义对人们基本价值观的影响。

关键词：个人主义；《肖申克的救赎》；自由