Themes In The Other Wes Moore

In the novel The Other Wes Moore One Name Two Fates written by Wes Moore, each Wes led similar lives but due to seemingly minor decisions in their lives their outcomes drastically differ. There are choices that will come up in life and as seemingly irrelevant or innocent those choices seem can come back and affect the outcome of one's life. The level of commitment that one puts into their work or studies no matter if they want to do it or not, will matter down the road. As trivial as it may seem the support that family and friends offer play a major outcome in an individual's success. The way one's life pans out is not solely dictated in the large moments and in the obvious factors, but the little moments and the seemingly irrelevant factors
Wes found himself at Valley Forge after doing poorly in school and him hitting his sister pushed his mother over the edge to send him there. At first Wes did everything he could to escape from there. On his final attempt Sergeant Austin told Wes the direction the train station was in. Wes left only to discover it was a trap and, his chain of command took him in. They gave Wes a phone call home which was forbidden to new plebs. Once this was over Wes became invested in Valley Forge and near the end of his time there, he said “Three years ago I’d been one of the insubordinate kids first entering the gates of Valley Forge. In an ironic turn, I was now one of the ones in charge of them” (Moore 115). That commitment he invested payed off Wes was a ranked member of Valley Forge, served in the Marines, and went to school at John Hopkins University and Oxford University. Wes also invested commitment into the Job Corps with his friend Levy. Wes wanted to turn his life around and support his families with an honest living so he left the drug trade and joined the Job Corps with Levy. Wes finished top of his class in General Education Development training. Once finished with the GED training he chose carpentry as his vocational specialty. While working on a project for his carpenter training Wes said “The house was more than just a project to complete. It was a daily reminder of why he was there. These past months had been the most important and enjoyable in Wes’s life” (Moore 143). This goes to show that when anyone puts forward effort and commitment they can find happiness. Putting forth commitment is important and affects the outcome of that person's life, but it will not always result in a good outcome without