The Other Wes Moore: Comparing My Life

In the epilogue of the story, the author, Wes, gives credit to the people who influenced him to try harder. He confessed that growing up in Baltimore and the Bronx made it harder to see the possibilities that life had for him. Wes Moore had strong and positive influences in his life that helped guide him on the right path to become a successful adult. His

The Other Wes Moore is an autobiography by Wes Moore: who stumbled upon another man with a name that was a carbon copy of his. Curious, Wes Moore decided to research this man’s past only to find out that they had grown in similar neighborhoods and with identical backgrounds (both lacking a father figure). Except, their fates were entirely different and in each story a turning point occurred that ushered greatness for one but desolation for the other.

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

In terms of Moore, his experiences throughout life were a bit better, but still not good. In chapter three, Moore explains his education and says, “I began to let my grades slip. Disappointed with Ds, pleasantly satisfied with Cs, and celebratory about a B, I allowed my standards at school to become pathetic” (Moore 54). Just like Wes, he resorts to doing illegal things to cope with the poor quality of life he experiences. The main difference between them is that Moore ends up receiving help, while Wes

“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

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.

The reasoning as to why I believe the other Wes Moore could have went down a path to success is if the other Wes Moore had the same family support as the author Wes Moore and if his brother who had a big influence on Wes, was not involved in the drug game. While both Wes Moore’s are both fatherless, the author Wes Moore was a lot luckier than the other Wes Moore, because he had his grandparents to help raise him. With the support of his grandparents, Wes had someone to look after him and also help steer him in the right direction if needed. His grandparents gave Wes and his sisters a set of rules and chores to do every single day. Compared to the other Wes Moore, he did not have any sort of discipline or rules to go by in his house due to the fact his mother and brother were never really at home. Furthermore, with the other Wes Moore, he only had his mother and his brother Tony, who both were not a good influence on him at all. The other Wes Moore looked up to his brother and wanted to be exactly like Tony. For example, when Wes got into a small

“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

The parallels in their stories aren't quite as compelling as they may appear initially. For example, the other Wes Moore spends a number of his developmental years living in the Bronx, NY, whereas his namesake never leaves Baltimore and its suburbs. Though Wes Moore is shipped off to military school (after his antisocial behavior in a privileged

A person does not control their personality as much as role models do. The Other Wes Moore is about two boys named Wes Moore that grew up on the same street but there is one very distinct difference between them. One is a successful lawyer and the other one is in prison. The story takes the reader through the lives of both men and key decisions to show the people they are today. In the book, The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore, the author explores the idea of role models to develop the theme, role models shape the way people act and think.

In the book The Other Wes Moore, one boy who shared the same name as another, who beared the same marks of a rough and racially uncultured childhood, who both had tragic losses in their families, investigate how they somehow ended up on completely different paths. Wes Moore, who starts in a rough neighborhood, grows up to be a distinguished and credible figure for politics and military leadership, being a college graduate from Harvard, a special assistant to the Secretary of State for a year, and also earning the right to be the first african-american to be awarded the Rhodes Scholarship. The other Wes Moore, who lived mere blocks away, grew up in the same rough neighborhood, but over his years he was incarcerated and jailed numerous times, his most extreme accusation having been attempted murder.

In addition, the ways the Wes’ mothers treated them built their foundation, because Mary, the other Wes’s mother, did not have the perseverance and drive that Joy, the author’s mother, did. Joy did not have the easiest past, from an abusive first husband to losing her second husband. However, she never let anything truly discourage her from making sure she raised her children correctly. Even when things got so out of control that she had to send Wes off to military school, she made sure it was the right decision and took care in making Wes know it was what was best for him, telling him during a phone call ““I love you, and I am proud of you. And, Wes, it’s time to stop running”” (Moore 96). Her authoritative yet caring message she delivered to Wes here clearly shows that she is not just sending him away because she can’t handle him, but rather that she is sacrificing whatever she has to in order to make sure Wes grows to be a respectable man. However, Mary approaches hardships with a much more cynical outlook, such as when Wes was caught with drugs that he intended to sell. “As Mary heard the door slam behind Wes, she sat back down on her bed. She pressed her fingers against her temples and began to massage them. She closed her eyes; her mind raced: Who is to blame for this? Tony, the neighborhood, the school system, Wes’s

The story starts with the question of “what if?” That question starts the reader off in a state of mind to question the turning point for each person. There are many key ideas that led two children of similar background to completely different lives. The main cause for both Wes Moore’s would arguably be the families in which each character was surrounded by. And it is actually that idea that shows that they did not begin with the same background at all. Each boy had a family and heritage that they grew up with that influenced their train of thought and behaviors. Moore, the writer of the book seemed to be (later on) thankful to his parents for the comforts that they gave up that led him to his success today. The other Wes Moore was not as wealthy when it came to those terms.

One name. Two fates. One would grow to be convicted of the murder of an innocent man, and the other would work in the White House for many years. How did these two men, who grew up in such similar situations, turn out to be so different? While both Wes Moores had similar attitudes towards their life as a child, and grew up in almost equivalent environments, they had more differences built into them than you would think.