Two seeds were planted in the same garden. The arid soil gave the seeds small hope of flourishing into lively plants. One of the seeds was cared for by a gardener who loved and protected it; the seed grew to be a beautiful plant. Likewise, the other seed had a gardener who took care of it. This gardener loved the seed as well, however due to lack of responsibility and absence of the gardener, the prospective seed perished. This is the image that comes to me when I read The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore. Both Wes Moore characters are dealt very similar cards with numerous factors shaping their outcomes. So how did the paths of these two diverge? These two characters had very different crowds of people surrounding them. The author Wes Moore had
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Much like Joy, Mary wants the best for her son but has poor habits that inhibit her from being a decent parent. Ambition runs through Mary’s veins like blood. She promised herself that she will make it out of Baltimore City and despite being a teenage mother, she made it into John Hopkins University while working a full-time job. Being forced to drop out was very hard for Mary. She did not let this unfortunate situation dampen her ambition. “She just had to quickly recalibrate her ambitions. She still had big dreams-maybe she could become an entrepreneur, open a beauty salon or own her own fashion company” (Moore 18). Other Wes wanted to be a football star, or even a rapper. This is evidence that Mary’s ambition rubbed off on Wes. Despite Mary’s resilience and ambition she has a bad side. She fails to provide other Wes with structure which would help keep him out of trouble. This is a result of her busy work schedule and the fact that she is constantly out partying. Despite her academic achievement, she fails to keep tabs on other Wes’s academics. She also served as a catalyst for Wes’s entry into the world of drugs by keeping a stash of marijuana in the house. Her reaction to seeing her son high and drunk was the part that was most concerning to me. “how do you feel?” Mary asked, intentionally speaking loudly, she gave her son a sarcastic yet toothy smile.” (Moore 61). Mary’s “bad side” is one of …show more content…
Other Wes’s support system was crippled by hypocrisy. Mary was hypocritical in telling Wes to stay out of drugs when she had a stash in her room. Tony was hypocritical because he told Wes to stay out of drugs while he is an avid drug dealer. Other Wes assimilates into what he sees around him. “Wes was so confused. He loved and respected his brother. Tony was the closest thing that Wes had to a role model. But the more he tried to be like his brother, the more his brother rejected him. (Moore 72)”. Much like Mary, Tony wants the best for Wes, but as a role model he does not leave the greatest footsteps to follow in. I connected with this book on a very personal level. Joy reminds me a lot of my
Mom who was also a single mom for most of my life. My mom also emphasizes the importance of education very heavily. In a way, the whole dynamic that is happening where Wes is being defiant to his mom, when she is just trying to help him improve his grades reminds me of how things used to be between me and my
Much like Joy, Mary wants the best for her son but has poor habits that inhibit her from being a decent parent. Ambition runs through Mary’s veins like blood. She promised herself that she will make it out of Baltimore City and despite being a teenage mother, she made it into John Hopkins University while working a full-time job. Being forced to drop out was very hard for Mary. She did not let this unfortunate situation dampen her ambition. “She just had to quickly recalibrate her ambitions. She still had big dreams-maybe she could become an entrepreneur, open a beauty salon or own her own fashion company” (Moore 18). Other Wes wanted to be a football star, or even a rapper. This is evidence that Mary’s ambition rubbed off on Wes. Despite Mary’s resilience and ambition she has a bad side. She fails to provide other Wes with structure which would help keep him out of trouble. This is a result of her busy work schedule and the fact that she is constantly out partying. Despite her academic achievement, she fails to keep tabs on other Wes’s academics. She also served as a catalyst for Wes’s entry into the world of drugs by keeping a stash of marijuana in the house. Her reaction to seeing her son high and drunk was the part that was most concerning to me. “how do you feel?” Mary asked, intentionally speaking loudly, she gave her son a sarcastic yet toothy smile.” (Moore 61). Mary’s “bad side” is one of …show more content…
Other Wes’s support system was crippled by hypocrisy. Mary was hypocritical in telling Wes to stay out of drugs when she had a stash in her room. Tony was hypocritical because he told Wes to stay out of drugs while he is an avid drug dealer. Other Wes assimilates into what he sees around him. “Wes was so confused. He loved and respected his brother. Tony was the closest thing that Wes had to a role model. But the more he tried to be like his brother, the more his brother rejected him. (Moore 72)”. Much like Mary, Tony wants the best for Wes, but as a role model he does not leave the greatest footsteps to follow in. I connected with this book on a very personal level. Joy reminds me a lot of my
Mom who was also a single mom for most of my life. My mom also emphasizes the importance of education very heavily. In a way, the whole dynamic that is happening where Wes is being defiant to his mom, when she is just trying to help him improve his grades reminds me of how things used to be between me and my