In the book The Other Wes Moore , both Wes’s have similar ways of being brought up, yet in the end they end up in two different places. The question is how did they end up in such different places when their childhood was similar. One of the differences in Wes Moore’s life is that he went to military school. When Wes thought about the people who had the biggest impact on his life it was the, “... men [he] most trusted all had something in common, they all wore the uniform of the United States of America”(Moore 132). In the end, military school showed Wes what success and honor looked like and he wanted that for himself. He started to apply himself, go to school and fight in the military. Around the same time Wes was going to military school, the other Wes stopped going to …show more content…
By the other Wes not going to school and getting into the drug game accounted to his fate and by Wes going to military school helped him on the right path. Another difference in the men’s lives that changed their fate was their families. The other Wes did not have good role models when he was growing up. His brother Tony was big into the drug industry and most of his friends were into the drug game. Even though Tony didn’t want Wes in the drug game, “Tony had now spent over a decade dealing drugs and knew how much money could be made in the game”(Moore 70). As a young child it is hard to not follow in your family's footsteps when that's all you know to be true. When the other Wes was making decisions about his life he didn’t have good role models to show him what is right and wrong. On the other hand Wes had very good role models in his life. His mother did everything she could for Wes, like sending him to a private school, moving in with their grandparents and sending him to military. His mom and grandparents sacrificed a lot for him to have a good future. Also, they were good role models, hard-working and
The Other Wes Moore is a book talking about two different men with the same name,Wes Moore. They were both raised up by a single mother and live in the same decaying city, Baltimore, where there are surrounded by drug and alcohol. However, the author Wes Moore’s parents completed their education and have a good job while his grandparents also were well-educated. But the other Wes Moore’s parents didn’t graduate from college, his mother tried to get the scholarship but failed, and his father left high school and don’t have a job either. This two Wes Moores both grew up with their mother. The author Wes’s father died for disease while the other Wes’s father left his family. With this situation, they went to the same direction, being absent from
The Other Wes Moore is a novel that shows the different paths of two different men, one successful and the other not so fortunate. We discovered their different identities and how their choices and role models affect their lives. Wes 1 was led by his brave, hard working mother and the great military men. He didn't make incredibly great decisions but the people in his life helped him turn into the successful man he is today. However, Wes 2 had a brother who dealt drugs.
The main conflict that Wes Moore faced was surviving and overcoming the troubles and influences in the environments he grew up in. Wes went through many experiences, several of them having to do with the worrying activities that went on around him everyday. This quote describes how all of the people living in the same places as Wes, struggled through the same things, what Wes described to be, “…the deadly streets, poverty, and the twin legacy of exclusion and low expectations.” (Moore 170) This means that the economic issues of these cities directly influenced the inhabitants’ life decisions and everyone had the same expectation for life, nothing good. With this expectation in mind, it is easy to see how these issues continued to affect the
The book basically talks about two young boys both with the name Wes Moore, who grew up in Baltimore and in the same neighborhood but never knew of each others existence. This is until the author Wes Moore, the one who escaped his rough childhood in Baltimore and the Bronx, began meeting with the other Wes Moore and questioning him who is spending his life in prison because of attempted murder. The author Wes Moore who managed to escape his situation growing up had a much more supportive mother who moved him away from Baltimore and continued to push him to get an education. He lived in the Bronx for sometime with his grandparents and mother, and attended a well renowned school in the Bronx. His mother worked several jobs in order for him to
1. Briefly describe each of the Wes Moore’s. Include information you believe is important to their life path (community, family life, big decisions, etc.).
It’s in these subtle differences that one can identify where it went wrong for the Other Wes Moore. The reason that there was no father figure is drastically different, the author's father died when Moore was
In “The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates,” written by Wes Moore the author writes about two boys growing up in Baltimore that share the same name and similar backgrounds but end up taking drastically different paths in life due to many varying factors. The author goes on to earn a college degree, become a Rhodes Scholar, a veteran and more while the “other” Wes cannot avoid the inevitable fate of dealing drugs and ultimately spends his life running from the police and in prison. This reflects how both Wes Moore’s became products of their environment as the way a person is shaped and guided in their developmental years does unquestionably play a large role in the type of person they will become as adults. A lot of elements come into play that help to determine a person’s success or failure, but at the end of the day the most important factors are family, education and opportunities.
Like the author Wes and the other Wes, they both did not have good role models, barely knew their fathers. Neither of them had a safe neighborhood where they could focus on school and not be distracted by drugs or violence. Both of them had obstacles that they needed to get through but were also given opportunities to get on the right path. Wes did the other Wes did not take it. For example, both of them had experience being arrested and put in a police car that was their obstacle. The author Wes was terrified, “...but I was also sincerely fearful about what was going to happen next.” (83). He knew he screwed up and wasn’t sure if he was going to end up a cell and or have to face his mother about. The Other Wes was not afraid of the police or even afraid of his consequences. When he got arrested he kept denying it like it would somehow change what had already happened. Even the first time he was arrested for shooting someone he immediately started selling drugs as soon as he got out. Both of them lived in the same city and they barely had a relationship with their father’s. The lack of a role model for each of them had a huge impact on their lives. The other Wes Moore had Tony to look up to, but he was just one drug deal short of ending up dead or in a cell.(57) The author Wes had to rely on himself because his only role model were his friends. They both had a mother, but
In their respective life journey, both Wes Moores often found them facing with some hard choices or decision to make or standing at a crossroads of life change without knowing which way to turn. Therefore, “for all of us who live in the most precarious places in this country, our destinies can be determined by a single stumble down the wrong path or a tentative step down the right one” (Moore xiv). During their early childhood, both Wes Moores struggle at school and had troubles with the law. However, for the author Wes Moore, attending the military school was the biggest turning point in his life. Aware of his mother’s determination, his family’s sacrifice, and encouragement from classmates and instructors as well as the influence of role models, the author Wes Moore finally made up his mind that he wanted to succeed in the military school. At the end, the author Wes Moore fulfilled his dream and did well academically from then on. On the other hand, the other Wes Moore had tumbled on a series of missteps along the road: dropping out of school, getting involved with drug trade, committing violent crimes, and being a father of four when he was so young and immature. Even though there was a time when he tried to reinvent himself: joining the Job Corp, getting a high school diploma, and finding some decent jobs, the reality and his making-quick-money mentality eventually brought him back to the original path with no return. At last, by committing an armed robbery that left a police officer dead, the other Wes Moore irreversibly drove himself to the dead end of life. Obviously, based on their early life experiences, both Wes Moores would have gone the same route to failure. Nevertheless, at some critical points of their lives, the author Wes Moore made some good choices with intervention and guidance of good people while the other Wes Moore lost his footing under undue
Moore quote including said, “It was a different psychological environment, where my normal expectations inverted, where leadership was honored and class clowns ostracized” (96). The quote The (author) Wes Moore seen in his Military School that the lower freshmen was respects the higher ranking. The (author) was very amazed that in his military school the students were respect their superior and follow their command and their honor code rules to obey by. At the Military School teaches (author) Wes Moore about learn the discipline, leadership, and teamwork. The military do care about the (Author) Wes Moore successes. The (author) Wes Moore have the stronger mentor giving him the responsibility of their trust on him to force him to change his bad behavior that impact his teenage and adulthood
The lessons that are taught through experience are usually the ones that stick with children for a lifetime. In Toni Cade Bambara's “The Lesson”, Miss Moore, a prominent character in the story, teaches a lesson to underprivileged children growing up in Harlem. Bambara's work is described as “stories [that] portray women who struggle with issues and learn from them.” (Vertreace, Par. 48) Bambara uses Miss Moore and her characteristics to teach Sylvia and the other children about social inequality and the idea of pursuing personal aspirations regardless of social status. Miss Moore has many admirable characteristics; she's intelligent, patient and caring.
“I guess it’s hard sometimes to distinguish between second chances and last chances” (Moore 67). This is a powerfully central theme to the book The Other Wes Moore, written by Wes Moore. For the two men this book is about, it all begins with a wide-open future. The mothers that gave birth to them and the influences they had, along with their own powerful choices, sealed their fate . People don’t ever stop growing or improving and the two Wes Moore’s are no different. Throughout their lives, they are constantly changing and in some places calling the shots. One chose correctly, and one did not.
In chapter 5 of The other Wes Moore by Wes Moore, both protagonist are encountered with being taken out of their environment. In the 5th chapter the author Wes was sent to military school and the other Wes is arrested after shooting a “jump off's cousin”(105-106). For Wes being taken out of his loose Bronx environment and being put into a strict military environment drove him crazy. The insanity Wes faced can be attributed to the apparent structure the military school had, unlike the Bronx. Like the title of chapter 5 both Wes and the other Wes are lost beyond belief, although they are both lost they both have an opportunity to grow from an change in environment.
Not taking action upon the chance that is given to one in a way defeats the purpose of why the chance was given to that person. Wes had wanted to have a fresh start. So he left Cheryl, and went over to a friend who had recommended the Job Corps, and soon after that, Wes went for an interview. It states, "Two weeks after his conversation with Levy, Wes stood in the parking lot on the corner of Saratoga and Greene streets, waiting for the bus that would take him to the Woodland Job Corps Center in Laurel" (Moore 140). This situation perfectly supports the quote that in which, it shows that the Other Wes Moore was given a chance to act on changing his life, and he did in fact do that. This proves that acting on a chance can lead one to success. One cannot lose anything in a situation similar to this, so acting upon it is very important. Therefore, act upon a chance that is given, it may lead one to extreme
...his dedication. When both Frank and myself were children, we fell in love with film and storytelling. We both saw it as an escape and as a new world, we are both dedicated to film and to telling stories. Frank and I also both share the dedication of making the best of our own lives, and working hard to guarantee ourselves success. Whether it is helping our family, giving to others, or working hard to make other people happy; Frank and myself both share dedication for many things. Dedication is very important in people's lives. It keeps them driven, loyal, and hopeful. If it wasn’t for Franks dedication, we wouldn’t have gone to America, and his family would still be depressed. If it wasn’t for my dedication, my love for film and my dream of becoming a filmmaker would vanish. Dedication changes everyone's lives, and what you are dedicated to make all the difference.