Stylistic Analysis Of The Other Wes Moore

Crossroads
The Other Wes Moore chronicles the life of two boys who share the same, and similar backgrounds. One might be tempted to assume their fates would be the same. From the color of their skin to not growing up with a father, even skipping classes it is clear their both took a different direction. The author Wes Moore is now a well acclaimed humanitarian, educated, and holding various awards and recognitions, while the other Wes Moore is serving a life sentence in prison. The author says, “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his” (xi). While the choices they made built their future, the line between success and failure was drawn by a strong support group and circumstances.

Firstly, the first choices that shaped the two Wes’s future came from outside influences. The author did not start of by making the right choices regarding his future, he was performing badly in school and hanging out with criminals. Wes was sent to a private school by a hard working mother and grandparents in hopes to provide the young boy with a strong education. Wes’s mother was the strongest base of the foundation in which his success is built. Wes says, “But no matter how much the world around us seemed ready to crumble, my mother was determined to see us through it” (47). Wes being conscious of his mother’s sacrifices still decided to skip class, and get involved with the wrong crowd, this is where his life took a crucial turn by the choices his mother made for him, he was sent to military school. While in military school he was able to distance himself from a life of violence and crime. The other Wes also had a caring mother who wanted the best for her sons, however she was far from helping them make the right choices. Unlike the authors family, Mary Moore had the job of raising her kids on her own, despite wanting a future she could no leger achieve for Wes, she made crucial mistakes as a parent and neglected to set a reform help change the path in which Wes was headed. After skipping school and partying with his friends, Wes comes home intoxicated, Mary’s reactions was not what you would expect from a parent in such situation, “Mary laughed, watching him squirm. ‘Well, at least now you know how bad it feels and you will stay away from drinking.’ She said” (62). Mary neglected to stand firm and teach her son why he should not abuse substances, instead she chose to laugh at the situation.
Secondly, while choices were made by their families, certain events also played a key role on the path the two Wes’s decided to take.

By the time both man were capable of rationalizing, and making decisions on their future, a chain of events had unfolded, second chances were given and circumstances led to choices made. As the other Wes Moore realizes now, “‘From everything you told me, both of us did some pretty wrong stuff when we were younger. And both of us had second chances. But if the situation or context where you make the decition don’t change, then second chances don’t mean too much, huh’?” (66). The author despite his bad grades and running with police after being caught tagging decide to really focus and take advantage of the second chance he got when he went to military school. Wes exceeded as a young boy who soon became the highest- ranking cadet on campus seeing over more than eight hundred cadets. Soon after that he would attend and graduate with honors from prestigious John Hopkins university. He was able to take the right turn and achieve all of this by being able to focus on myself and having nothing to hold him back. The other Wes Moore, who had preformed badly in school, and had been arrested and tried for attempted murder was also given a second chance, he went back to school. However, the circumstance was different, the other Wes Moore, now a father and wanting to be there for his son made the choice to leave school in fear of not being able to provide for the new born. His choices would eventually take him to the time and place were he took a wrong turn, robbed a jewelry store, shot and killed an off duty police officer, consequently being sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of

parole.
In conclusion, the difference between the choice made, and the path the two Wes' took was purely derivate from, having the right people, and a combination of the series of events that led them to the path their lives are now. For the author a strong and determined mother, and caring grandparents paved the road for him. Having taken full advantage of his second chance for success gave him the last boost to become a hero among the Baltimore community. For the other Wes Moore, having a mother who would rather look the other way than stand up and be a parent put him in the wrong path at an early age, he sealed his fate and became a monster in the Baltimore community by ignoring his second chance and continuing through a rocky road. Let this story serve as an example of how our everyday choices affect our future, like Wes Moore says, “Our stories are obviously specific to our two lives, but I hope they will illuminate the crucial inflection points in every life, the sudden moments where our paths diverge and our fates are sealed. It’s unsettling to know how little separates each of us from another life altogether”. (xiv).