How Are Wes Moore Different From Each Other

The Wes Moore, didn’t have much of a father figure growing up, or anyone to influence him. He might have had his mom, and his grandparents to help him through the military school experience, but he still didn’t have a role model. For the other Wes Moore, his role model was his brother. The other Wes Moore’s brother Tony, was a drug dealer, and not the right person to help influence his life. Tony did care about his brother, and tried to help him succeed, but the other Wes didn’t have a father figure either, and saw Tony as a “dad.”

Both Weses had several circumstances in common that happened early on in their lives. Moore narrates that he lost his father at a young age due to a medical misdiagnosis. The author says that with the loss of his father, his family had to move to the Bronx to live with his grandparents. The author Wes was the second of three children, and with the absence of his father, his mother Joy had to work multiple jobs to send him and his siblings to school. Moore adds that he was enrolled in a private school but skipped his classes often and was put on academic probation. On the other hand, the

"The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine... It's unsettling to know how little separates each of us from another life altogether (Moore XI)." The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore is about two men who have the same name, Wes Moore. Both grew up in similar areas, each made choices that lead to one spending life in jail and the other spent his being in the military. The Wes Moore's grew up in the 1970's-1980's. They both were poor with single mothers who worked day in and day out, and still struggled to be able to be above the poverty line. For each man there was one moment that changed the future of their life. In the book,The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore, the author explains the idea of poverty to develop the theme poverty can affect an individual negatively, but each action and decision a person makes can control whether his or her life is positive or negative.

Moore was a troubled kid, getting into fights, getting in trouble for graffiti, running away was sent to many different schools. He was the poor kid in a sea of rich kids (so he didn’t fit in). But he was given the opportunity to change when he was forced to go to a Military boarding school. He eventually decided that he wanted to be apart of something bigger than himself and this was it. He knew he wanted to change. When deciding how he could change he thought, “Aside from my family and friends, the men I trusted most all had something in common: they all wore the uniform of the United States of America,” (Moore pg. 132). He decided he wanted to become a Lieutenant and be someone other people could look up to. This was a major moment in Moore’s life. But Wes, on the other hand, experienced the same bad childhood and never got out of the “bad”. He never had a defining failure where he said ‘this is when I change’. He got onto a path and started making patterns with his decisions and never made the right one to get him to where he needed to be, unlike the other Wes.

Many people would say we are all just products of our environment. For two young boys from Baltimore, this could not be truer. In “The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates,” written by Wes Moore, two fatherless, young boys growing up in the same neighborhood with the same name, end up on two entirely different paths of life. The author becomes a Rhodes Scholar, college graduate, veteran, and much more, while the “other” Wes gets deeply involved with the drug game and spends most of his life in trouble with the law. When these boys come from such similar backgrounds, how is it that they take such different journeys in life? The reason why one Wes Moore became mixed up with drugs and the law, and

The other Wes moore born and raised in West Baltimore,Without a father and his only male role model,a brother in the dope game(Tony), and a weak minded mother(Mary). There wasn't much guidance in this young mans life. Absence of a father can sometime Damage a boy's life,not knowing whether or not it's your fault he left,not knowing if he’s coming back or not, even more so if he wants to be apart of your life. In his father's absence ,he resorted to something he always known would be

In the book, The Other Wes Moore it is difficult to believe the great similarities in the lives of the two Moores, who share a name and other aspects of life. The two were raised fatherless and were born in the late 1970’s in the neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. They also happen to have encountered similar experiences when growing up, but at one point one of them became a criminal and the other a scholar (the author of the book). The author of the book seems to be interested in the similarities of the two boys as opposed to their different experiences. The story is interesting and makes one imagine what would have become of the writer if he did not by any chance come across the people who guided him to become what

The Other Wes Moore is a book about two young African-American lives that share the same name, Wes Moore. Both Wes Moores grew up with similarities, they both grew up in the same hometown. One of the Wes Moore is free and the other one is spending his life in jail. They both grew up without fathers. The author's father died in front of him when he was just three years old and the other Wes Moore barley knew his dad. The Author's father wasn’t there because he couldn’t be, and the other Wes Moore, father wasn’t there because he chose not to be. Both mothers were working hard towards setting their families and to support and care for their sons.

In order to help the author Wes, Joy sent him to military school because she knew that the choice she made for her son would ensure that her son would be able to go into the world completely disciplined and prepared even if he hated her for sending him away. When explaining how the book was written, the author acknowledged, “This book is meant to show us how… our destinies can be determined by a single stumble down the wrong path, or a tentative step down the right one” (Moore xiv). She made the decision as a mother for her son’s entire future that ends up stopping him from making decisions like the other Wes Moore’s. The author acknowledges that the decisions he made and the decisions that the other Wes made affected their lives forever when he said, “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that mine could have been his” (Moore 180). The other Wes Moore made poor decisions in his youth that led to a continuous use of drugs, alcohol, and unprotected sex. These decisions ultimately led to Wes being put into jail, hurting the ones he loved and changing his future

The other Wes Moore is also considered to be deviant by his poor decision-making and careless choices. He dropped out of school, sold drugs, participated in a robbery of a jewelry store, and was a convicted murderer with a life sentence. There was many sociological factors that led to the other Wes Moore’s deviant behavior; the absence of his father being an important factor. Although both the author Wes Moore and the other Wes Moore grew up without a father, it affected the other Wes Moore a little more considering the fact that his father chose not to be in his life. Also, Tony had a big impact on the decision he made for himself. Throughout the story, Wes would remember what Tony told him about demanding respect. “Send a message,” And Wes would do as Tony said. The problem with the other Wes Moore was that he lacked positive influences in his life and he had no motivation to live a better life until it was too late.

    Humans have come to a conclusion that all lives are different, but all go through many hardships and tragedies. The impact from a slight difference can vary to be very vast to very small, such a slight difference, however, can change a person’s life as a whole. In the book, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore there is a difference that can be identified between the author’s life and that of the other Wes. This difference, though can be very critical and is ultimately able to lead to a path of triumph or failure for an individual. The lack of involvement a mother has for their child can fundamentally deprive them from succeeding, and parent involvement has the opportunity to

While Wes Moore was able to change his situation and begin to make better decisions, the other Wes Moore was never able to accomplish such task. During one of their conversations, the incarcerated Wes said, "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 the context where you make the decisions don't change, then second chances don't mean much, huh?" (66). In the same conversation, about ¼ of the way into the book Moore realized an important aspect in life, "I sat back, allowing Wes's words to sink in. Then I responded, 'I guess it's hard sometimes to distinguish between second chances and last chances.'" (Moore 67).

The differences that landed these two on opposite ends of the world were personal choices. Wes Moore decided to straighten up and do what not only his family wanted for him,but what he wanted for himself. Living in poverty was not easy for him but he made efforts to make the best out of his situation and make a change which ultimately bettered his life. The imprisoned Wes Moore got stuck in the selling drugs because he felt as though that was the only way for him to make fast money. Where he lived made it even more accessible for him to be involved in bad activities. There was a time when Wes wanted better for himself and went into a program called Job corps which placed him in a job for the time being. Not so long after Wes decided to go back to selling drugs and feeding into temptations that was presented to him.

Wes Moore explain his life events and how he over came all the obstacles. He was a man who grew up just seeing his father twice, and he saw him at four an seeing him die in his face. That when him and his family move to New York, and his attitude change toward life and his family. So his mother sent his to military school and then he went to finish college. Then, a tragic thing happen near the place he was brought up, a police officer with five kids was off duty and he was shot three times. The police officer died on site and it was a national 12 day man hunt. The killers was found and one of their names was Wes Moore, and the Wes Moore that went to college wanted to learn more about him. So, he found out that him and the other Wes Moore had

Both Wes' grew up in a similar way however one of them chose a better decisions as he went through his life. In the book, Wes Moore states "The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The disaster is that my story could have been his" (Wes Moore 1). This quote shows that the “Other” could of easily had the chance to have a better life than Wes Moore but the actions that he chose to do cost him his future and having a lifetime sentence in prison. On the otherhand Wes Moore likewise had the opportunity to be an awful individual growing up yet subsequent to being a veteran from the armed force, he turned into an exceptionally shrewd individual and was blessed to transform into an extremely great representative.