An Essay On The Other Wes Moore

"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.

The situations that both Wes Moore’s experience throughout the story The Other Wes Moore are real life problems that people face each and every day. But what is being done to change this? Every day people fall victim to things such as racism, assimilation, political and economic power, and tokenism. Yet, there are ways to help people who are experiencing problems such as these. The only thing that needs to be done is to have enough people stand up for these problems. Whether the solutions to these problems are macro, or micro, there needs to be some sort of effort to help the people who experience these sorts of oppressions.

Throughout “The other Wes Moore”, The Wes’ were faced with surprisingly similar situations that were handled in very different ways. These situations were key turning points in each of their lives and shaped them into who they are. Even though each Wes had hardships in their environment and faced many trials and tribulations, ultimately, their choices during these times are what produced each Wes. Because of their series of different choices that each Wes Moore made during their lifetime and the outcome of their choices, we are not just products of our environments, but also products of the choices we make.

A person’s success or failure can be determined by their environment, education, choices; a number of different things. The autobiography The Other Wes Moore takes a look at two boys with the same name and eerily similar circumstances who end up in very different places in life. Wes Moore spoke at convocation about his book and what he hoped that people would get from it. In the book he says “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his.” (Moore xi). These two men didn’t share the same fate because they each made a choice about what they wanted their life to become. The book truly demonstrates how the choices you make, make you. One Wes

In conclusion, both Wes Moore’s had critical moments and different standpoints throughout the entirety of their lives. Though they both had individual accountabilities it was the choices that they individually made that ultimately determined there fates. “Wes and I stared at each other for a moment, surrounded by the evidence that some kids were forced to become adults prematurely. These incarnated men, before they’d even reached a point of basic maturity, had flagrantly-and tragically-squandered the few opportunities they’d

Moore, Wes. The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates. Array New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2010.

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.

Wes Moore the author says, “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his.” In my opinion, I agree with Wes Moore the authors’ statement; there were several times throughout the lives of both the successful Wes Moore and the other Wes Moore that went to prison could have impacted either one of them to go down the opposite path that they originally took.

Wes #1 more than just a soon to be author but a person that can be learned from and someone to make you believe in a bigger future.

Bad Influences, Stressful Situations, and Abandonment led to the incarceration of the Other Wes Moore. The Other Wes Moore was a man that lived in the same neighborhood as the successful Wes Moore, but he had more negatives than positives in his life, which causes him to be influenced by all of the bad influences.

The officers then find them both but Wes “decided to take his case to trial. He insisted that he was not there the day of the murder” (Moore 155) and he was guilty. He was sentenced life in prison and “finally he could see his future” (Moore 157). On the other hand the author Wes Moore became very successful. He was accepted and received scholarship money to John Hopkins. He was able to go on his “first long-term trip abroad” (Moore 163) to South Africa. He was able to go around and notice the similarities between the people there and the people that he had grew up with. He is able to see challenges that people everyday face and sees hope for everyone to redeem themselves. For himself he can relate to that on a personal level because he’s “had the freedom to make those mistakes, and the freedom to seek redemption for them” (Moore 179). He has become a great man because of everything he was able to overcome. He knew he needed to be better and he knew determination would get him places. He had a mind set for hope and he could of had the other Wes Moore’s life but instead he was able to pursue all his struggles and “see the boundless possibilities of the wider world and the unexplored possibilities within [himself]” (Moore 179). People in life overcome lots of adversities and it’s great for those who can but for those who can’t it may be easier to see them as people who struggle to find how they want to be in the world. Some people are determined but some people don’t bother to change the person they shouldn’t

I think that the scholar Wes Moore was able to find the right path because he was brought up with really strong and influential people in his life. As he grew up he was

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 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).