The Other Wes Moore Essay

In The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore. Moore states, “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his” (180). In my opinion, this statement is true, depending on how people interpret it. I see it as yes, it is a tragedy that Wes II did not end up a successful man as Wes I did. However, they both had turning points that could have drastically changed their fates. The only difference was that Wes I had more people helping sculpt him into a wonderful man, and unfortunately Wes II did not. I believe that the environment, mom’s decisions, and teachers all contributed into who these two young men would turn out to be in life.
Wes II began to fall into the drug game like his older brother, Tony, at a young age and his mom flushed his drugs down the toilet. Mary did not lecture him, or give him more than a sentence. She just acted like she did not care that he had to find a way to repay someone four thousand dollars for the drugs she flushed. I believe that she just gave up on her son, because of the fact that Tony had already fallen into the same life style, Wes II was bound to do the same. Because Wes II‘s father was not in
Joy was his support, and when he tried to run away from military school she was there to remind him that he can’t keep running. Joy being a great support system for her son is one thing I believe helped her son be the successful man he is to this day. Wes I had family that would push him ahead, while Wes II had family that would bring him down. I believe that family is key to our success. If you don’t have someone there to guide you and teach you the good, how are you going to learn? Wes I’s grandfather was a great role model for Wes because he was a hardworking man, very respectful, and had family morals. Wes I whether knowingly or not knowingly was learning from his grandfather just by being around