Expectations Vs. Environment In The Other Wes Moore

Expectations versus environment has been an ongoing argument on which is more effective on a destiny. However, environment has much more effect in a destiny. It is nearly impossible not to see this play out in today’s society. “The Other Wes Moore” by Wes Moore is a prime example of how environment overrides expectations when it comes to creating a destiny. This book is primarily about two boys with the same names, but incredibly different fates that were predetermined by their uncontrollable environment. Wes Moore(a) grew up to fulfil a role in the U.S. Army and write a book. Wes Moore(p) sealed his fate by committing a felony and earning a life sentence in prison. The environment runs through primary lives, late teens, and early adulthood,

each playing a specific role in the predetermination of a destiny.

Environment says a lot about identity, past, and future. Primary environment has the most effect on shaping a child. According to a US National Library of Medicine research study, ”The physical environment and child development: An international review” it says, “What we do know suggests that the physical environment experienced by children impacts their cognitive and socioemotional development across the lifespan, from the prenatal period through adulthood.” In children this is especially important because a child develops most between the ages of two and five. There are three key elements that contribute to a healthy physical for young children, an adequate standard of living (mainly sufficient food, clothing, and housing), healthcare, and safety from injury, violence, and environmental hazards. In The Other Wes Moore, Wes(a) had all these things through his early years already setting him up for greatness. Wes(p) however lacked the majority of those elements that, without him knowing, were already lessening his shot at a good, healthy future. On page twenty-eight, Wes(a) gives a description of one of Wes(p)’s main childhood settings; “Cherry Hill became a breeding ground for poverty, drugs, and despair… isolated and desolate… (Moore 28)” As compared to the key environmental elements, not a single one could be found in Cherry Hill. As a young child, Wes(p) sees this as normal and okay for a living standard. This puts an image in his head that says, “Drugs, poverty, and despair is okay with the residents, so it should be okay with me.” This is a very unfavorable view to have going into teenage and adult years becoming independent.

Possibilism is a term used to describe that the environment or natural surroundings have a big effect on a culture and individuals alike. This is a prime example of how each of the Wes’s teenage and adolescent environments will affect them in the future. Wes(p) saw throughout his adolescent years that drugs were going to be a part of life, no matter how they'd be there, it was going to be inevitable. For this to come in such a crucial possible turning point is unfortunate, because high school years tend to determine a lot about children's futures; "He saw this every day. The people who would line up around the corner for drugs. The people who would do anything to score. He knew these people because he was the one who got them what they needed. It was his job…." (Moore 138) This quote show exactly how possibilism is put into play in young people’s lives. On the contrary, Wes(a) found a way to drastically turn his life around during his highschool years. None of this would've happened if he wouldn't have been placed in a new environment that would in turn, affect his destiny. Here, Wes(a) immersed himself in the new, impressive environment; “Valley Forge Military Academy sat on a rolling campus surrounded by overgrown foliage. It was a more austere version of Riverdale…” (Moore 89) Valley Forge Military Academy & College is a highly prestigious American boarding school, junior college, and military junior college located in Wayne, Pennsylvania. This definitely gave Wes a new motivation and shaped his destiny just a little more than he maybe knew at the time.

Environment is strategically predetermining your destiny even if you're completely oblivious to it.

As an adult, you've typically reached your social, economic, and environmental pinnacle. In Wes(p)’s case his destiny had already been sealed at this time. At age twenty-five he was convicted of felony murder and was sentenced to a life in the Jessup Correctional Facility. When asked about this for an interview on CBS May 10, 2010, 4:16 PM, Wes(p) quotes, “I thought that I had to be on the streets and live a life of crime. I thought that was my only real talent…” This, proven by Wes(p) himself, goes to show how influential environment is on destiny. Because Wes(p) was basically raised and grew up on drug ridden streets, he was thought to believe he would never be anything more than a product of the Baltimore streets. For that reason, Wes(p) ended up as nothing more than a product of his poor environment. Wes(a), however manipulated his environment to make the most out of his destiny. From the summer of 2005 to the summer of 2006 Wes(a) was deployed in the town of Khost, on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. He describes the environment as, “Spending so much time with my fellow soldiers reminded me why I had joined the military. The camaraderie, intensity, and passion for the job, and the sense of duty to something larger than myself, was something I had missed deeply. (Moore 177)” All individuals in the service have been trained to be adaptable and meet the constantly

changing needs of any situation and mission. Last minute changes are certainly not uncommon in any military or civilian environment. Wes(a) enhanced his fate by participating and submersing himself in the destiny set out specifically by his environment which in this time was participating in the military. This is important to remember because when his mother decided to send him to military school it immediately changed his surrounding environment as well as his destiny. If Wes(a) had not gone to Valley Forge Military Academy, it is clear his destiny would have been drastically different.

While it is obvious and very evident that environment has more effect on a destiny, some may say expectations have a greater effect on one's destiny.

This makes sense because Wes(a) explains his experience at Valley Forge as, “... leadership was honored and class clowns were ostracized…” If a level of authority expects a certain standard of you, you are inclined to uphold that standard for them. Expectations are exercised universally as well on the streets of Baltimore where Wes(p) grew up. His older brother, Tony Moore had high expectations for Wes that were unfortunately never fulfilled; “If you will not listen that is on you. You have the potential to do so much more, go so much further. (Moore 72)” The expectations that others have set for you no doubt affect you it is just a matter if you are willing to live up to them. That which is expected is what happens. It is not just kids on the streets that have expectations placed on them it is also kids in the classroom and in government offices; “I learned that the way governors projected the numbers of beds they'd need for prison facilities was by examining the reading scores of third graders. Elected officials deduced that a strong percentage of kids reading below their grade level by third grade would be needing a secure place to stay when they got older. (Moore 54)” Governors expect children reading below a third grade reading level to automatically end up in prison later in life. This is very over exaggerated because

many kids in these scenarios are good kids and may have a disadvantage of learning or a possible learning disability. Just because a child as early as third grade is expected to end up with a destiny in prison, has absolutely no guarantee of the probability of that happening.

It is clear that environment has much more effect in a destiny. It is nearly impossible not to see this play out in today’s society. Through one's early childhood, adolescent, and adult years, each primary environment plays a large role in determining a destiny. Mia Wasikowska explains the relationship between your early environment and how it shapes your destiny, “You never choose the way that you're raised, it's just the way that you were raised, but you do get to a certain age where you're in a position to question the expectations of you and the way that you've been formed by your surroundings.” Environment has a much larger effect on destiny than you might imagine, so if your primary environment is not in the direction of where you want your destiny to go, find a way to alter it. Environment is very powerful in terms of your destiny, so look around, what is your destiny?