The Other Wes Moore Analysis

Carol Dweck’s Brainology sets forth the “growth mindset” as the only factor in a student’s success. However, Alfie Kohn’s The Perils of ‘Growth Mindset’ Education: Why We’re Trying to Fix our Kids When We Should Be Fixing the System, proposes another view. Also, Home Life is a third factor that impacts a student’s success. I believe all three of these are integral to a student’s accomplishments.

In the novel, The Other Wes Moore, the narrator, Wes Moore, explains how he turned his life around for the better, while his friend, also named Wes Moore, ended up incarcerated. Now as a Rhodes Scholar, Wes Moore inspires many readers through his story. The narrator’s words and stories are used as a reminder to always do the right thing. One of Moore’s most important lessons he instructs is to treat everyone as equal. Black or white, rich or poor, Moore proves that it does not matter in the end.

“One name, two fates,” that what the author of the Other Wes Moore stated on the cover of his book. Two boys that were born in the same neighborhood in Baltimore, and had a difficult childhood since they both grew up fatherless. The coincidence was that the two boys were called Wes. They both shared a lot of similarities from living in a poor neighborhood and growing up in Baltimore street corners with their squads. However, their futures were completely different as one achieved the impossible and the other was a convicted murderer serving a life sentence. People may think that how could this happen since they both were living the same circumstances. However, in the book Wes Moore, the boys did not have equal opportunities in terms of parenting, education, and environment.

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

“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"(Page 67). In "The Other Wes Moore" the environment of both Wes Moore's were completely different from each other. They both made some stupid decisions over time but who is perfect? It is expected of everyone to make some mistakes, in my opinion the main influence on their choices came from their environment. In their environment they had peers that would influence them to do things that they did not necessarily want to do. This caused them to get into trouble, but at the same token, their environment also gave them some opportunities to make it through some rough times. For Example: Wes #2

Wes Moore, the author of “The Other Wes Moore” had many accomplishments in his life. He however gained notoriety with this book it was a New York Times best seller. In Chapter 7, the main idea is that two people living in the same environment had different outcomes in their lives by making entirely different decisions on how to deal with the adversities they faced in their lives. These decisions led to the lives that they ultimately lived. The tone was intense and high energy to begin with but then seemed to turn neutral in both men’s stories. The purpose is to inform the reader how the same environment can take two people and based on their decisions lead to very different out comes in life. The author takes each man’s thoughts and show how

By Moore telling their stories personally, readers have a evident perspective on the character of each man. Moore is able to demonstrate that he and the other man were never completely horrible individuals, even the other Wes Moore today, despite the choices they made. One time, the other Wes Moore was making the right decisions, like trying to provide for his family. While he was in the job training program, he decided to make a small house for his daughter to protect her, which shows that he did care for his loved ones (Moore 142-143). It was when he decided to go back to using drugs that his life fell apart. His choice to go back to drugs shows that it is not his mentors or loved ones who play the

In the novel The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates it tells the story of two boys with the same name but two very different mindsets in life. “Life and death, freedom and bondage, hang in the balance of every action we take” (xiv). Wes Moore (1), the author, has had many things that impacted to his mindset that led to good and evil choices thought-out his life. Wes Moore (2) had made decisions that set a wrong mindset that would leave him in one place for the rest of his life. The mindsets of Wes Moore (1) and Wes (2) impacted their chances with the law, their choices with education and their opportunities with employment.

In Wes Moore's book, The Other Wes Moore, he describes both his childhood and the early life of another boy of the same name who grew up near the author in the same Baltimore neighborhood. Moore's book explores the reasons why one boy, the author, succeeded in life while the other Wes Moore was overwhelmed by his struggles and will spend his life in prison. The author Wes Moore addresses different topics for the reader to take from the book.The ideas that are presented by him and should be recognised are the environment the boys grew up in, the motivation they got from family, and the influence from not having a father. The author Wes Moore has always had a supportive family while on the other hand the other Wes Moore had no one besides Tony, who even then was a big factor on why Wes is where he is at today. Their environment plays a big role in both of the boy’s life since they both were around the same things. The only difference is that one had a family who got him out of there to an environment that shaped him up to be the man that he is today and the one that never left will be the one that will never leave prison for the rest of his life.

In the book The Other Wes Moore, it has two different guys with the same name but different lives. Wes one, had a good family to take care of him. Wes two, wasn’t so fortunate, his family didn’t really care about him. I’ve never been in a situation like this but if you grow up like this on the streets and you want off bad enough you will do whatever it takes. You make your own life no one else.

Wes’s decision to leave school for an easier life of street dealing guided him down a path of misfortunes. The first of many came with his violent outburst to defend his pride. After a woman in relations with Wes Moore sees her boyfriend show up to his house, he angrily punches Wes in the face. In shock, Moore “could only see red. He was blind with rage. Instincts kicked in. Tony’s words rang through his mind. Send a message” (104). Proceeding the attack, he grabbed a gun out of his drawer and shot the man to prove a point that you do not mess with him. He was incarcerated for six months. To no surprise, what occured later in his life was the infamous shooting of a police officer in the midst of a robbery. This landed Wes Moore in a life sentence for murder. It all started with drug dealing and ended in indefinite incarceration for murder.

Role models play a huge role in shaping an individual and the paths that they go down in their lifetime. Whether it is a good or bad influence, it will depend which path they will take that will determine their fate. Often family members, especially parents, act as the most influential factor in a person’s life. Coincedientaly, The Other Wes Moore, is about two boys who have the same name and who have lived in the same city. One went on to become a Rhodes Scholar, combat veteran and a White House Fellow. Whereas, the other Wes Moore is sentenced to life a in prison for robbery, which led to the death of a police officer. In this book, both Wes Moores’ are influenced by at least one significant other that has influenced them to become the people

The book, “ The Other Wes Moore” by Wes Moore is about two young boys who were brought up in Baltimore with the same name and alike struggles. Throughout the book, the author is trying to get the readers to find an understanding of why him and the other Wes outcomes were so different of him being an accomplished author ,and the other Wes having life in jail. The author is trying to argue that the Wes Moores have similar lives, but in my opinion they are completely different. The Wes moores had different aspects such as roles models, resources and motivation that prevented them from having similar histories.

According to Marian Erickson, “Most of life is choices, and the rest is pure dumb luck.” Real people’s lives depend on this quote everyday, which leads to the outcome of each problem individuals face. In the passages, characterization of the main personas helps one understand the theme. Conflict and symbolism also help lead to the overall idea that life is not always guaranteed to be full of success. The book The Other Wes Moore, the poem “If,” and the informational text “The Art of Resilience” all share a common theme of how choices and luck contribute to the success of life.

The Other Wes Moore The Other Wes Moore is a book about two children with similar lifestyles when they were growing up and the same names, but ending up in different places in their lives. The story is about the other Wes Moore, who was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment and Wes Moore, the author, who faces poverty and has an ambition of receiving proper education (Moore, 2012).