Othello Dramatic Reading Video: Statement of Intent

In reading Emilia's monologue, I chose to use a tone halfway between serious and joking. Emilia is alone with a close friend during the scene, and at some points in the written language it seemed almost as though she is exaggerating her statements for humorous purposes. I identified with this because when I am with my good friends, even when we're talking about subjects that mean a lot to us we often joke about them or act as if they aren't as big of a deal as they actually are. However, as the monologue continues Emilia's tone becomes more and more serious. I saw this as her own realization that what she is really talking about is her own marriage and her anger towards Iago for being a bad husband. For this reason, I tried to start the speech more humorously and end on a more solemn note as Emilia's true thoughts and feelings really come out. I think that this was also the reason why I chose to take a longer pause before the section where Emilia is describing the things that men do that women also do. For me, this was where she really transitioned from a more jovial tone to talking about feelings that are very close to her, and the pause I took symbolizes her own mental pause to gather the courage to say what is really on her mind. Finally, I attempted to emphasize the words and phrases that I thought were most important to Emilia, such as "treasures" in the line "And pour our treasures into foreign laps." The word "treasures" in particular means a lot to Emilia because she feels as though Iago does not appreciate everything that she does for him-- in other words, he disregards the treasures that she gives him, among them the very treasure of having her for a wife.

Reading Emilia's monologue helped me understand her thoughts and desires. When most people read Othello, they think of Othello, Iago, and Desdemona as the major characters-- but I think that Emilia deserves to be recognized as a character who is important and progressive in her own right. As I read her lines more closely, I realized that Emilia isn't just talking about women in general; she is venting to Desdemona about how she feels about being married to Iago. Despite the fact that Emilia is loyal and kind to Iago, always trying his best to please him (including betraying her friend Desdemona by giving him her handkerchief), Iago barely seems to recognize that she is there. In Act Two, he jokes about how all women are useless objects to her face without regard to how she feels about it. Putting myself in Emilia's shoes made me realize that it is no wonder she believes men are responsible for the bad things that their wives do-- she must want to leave Iago all the time and yet she stays true to him, even though he acts as if she doesn't exist. To some people, that might make it seem like Emilia is a weak character who will do anything to please a husband who obviously doesn't love her. But I thought about it differently; to me, this monologue proves that Emilia actually does have her own strong beliefs and perspective, and she realizes that Iago is not fulfilling his role as a husband. This idea gave me an entirely new perspective on the play Othello. Before, I had thought that the play was primarily about the complicated minds of men and what they will do for women. But reading Emilia's monologue and seeing the strength with which Shakespeare portrayed her made me realize that the women in the play often have the upper hand over the men. Although Iago is the person who makes Othello jealous, Desdemona is still the object of his desires; there is no jealousy without her, and he is powerless to do anything against her will until the day that he kills her. Emilia herself is the person who uncovers Iago's plot by revealing to Othello that she was the one who gave Iago the handkerchief and not Desdemona. More than the jealousy of men, the deeper meaning of Othello is that the greatest power is often found in unexpected places, like the traditionally inferior women of the play or even Iago, the lower-ranking soldier.

Emilia's monologue is connected indirectly to the conflict of the play and her own characterization. While Iago is telling Othello lies about Desdemona's unfaithfulness, this scene explores Desdemona's utter disbelief at the idea that any woman would ever cheat on her husband, to which Emilia's speech is a direct response. Thus the conversation in the scene that the monologue is a part of serves to complicate the conflict by clearing up any doubt the reader may have of Desdemona's innocence-- and thus increases the tension as Othello becomes more and more sure that she is indeed cheating on him with Cassio. The monologue alone also serves as an important moment of characterization for Emilia. For the first time, we get to hear what she really thinks about marriage and her own life. Where before Emilia seems like a minor character, her monologue establishes the strength of her convictions. Her assertion that men are always responsible for the actions of their wives characterizes her as the strongest feminist character in Othello, a woman who is unwilling to believe that women should be blamed for their own unhappiness in marriage, and who thinks that both marriage partners should have equal treatment-- even when it comes to being unfaithful. 

"Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled": Title Justification Essay

The Other Wes Moore is the true story of two boys who shared the same name and hometown, but very different futures: while one found success in business and academics, the other is serving a life sentence in prison for murder. The book is divided into three sections that tell the stories of how the Wes Moores's paths diverged in such dramatic ways. The third, "Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled" focuses on the consequences and ramifications of the choices that each Wes has made as seen in their journeys through adulthood. The two Wes Moores, who once shared similar childhoods and backgrounds, now see their paths radically diverge. The title "Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled" is appropriate for the author Wes Moore's purpose as it demonstrates his feelings about the role that societal expectations had on both Wes's futures.

The title "Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled" emphasizes the influence of an outside force on the life paths of the two Wes Moores. In the chapters that follow, it is clear that the "expectations" Moore writes about are not those of the two title characters, but instead those of a larger societal body. Early in the story, Moore writes about how Baltimore government used the reading scores of third graders to decide how many prison beds they need. This sets up an important theme that is present throughout the book, but especially in the final section: to the rest of society, the other Wes Moore is beyond saving. He is already gone. This idea is seen in the italicized section before the chapter "The Land That God Forgot," where the two men are having a conversation in jail. The other Wes Moore says, "'We will do what others expect of us... If they expect us to go to jail, then that's where we will end up too. At some point you lose control" (126). Wes truly believes that the reason he is in jail is that society has given up on him-- and he may not be far from the truth. The author leaves it open to interpretation whether or not Wes was actually guilty of the crime he is imprisoned for, but the fact that he was convicted when there was still considerable doubt about his innocence shows the extent to which he was profiled. It is almost as if the jury had already voted before he even walked in; Wes's assertion about expectations makes it clear that he thinks that he was imprisoned for his skin color and his reputation as opposed to any actions he actually made during the crime. For this reason, the "path" that Wes takes is one that goes directly to jail and will stay there for the rest of his life, because that is what society has expected from him all along and he feels powerless to do anything against it. The same idea can also be seen in the life of the author Wes Moore. At the beginning of his life, society had the same expectations for him as it did for the other Wes-- but this all changed when he joined the army. As an officer, Wes sets himself apart. He says that he was told upon being commissioned that "I was one of the youngest officers in the entire United States military" (134). Excelling in the army makes Wes more than just another hoodlum; he is above average, a man who leads other men. This has an obvious change on the way that society must view him. He has become a role model instead of a man to look down upon, someone who has broken through the mold and should be rewarded with scholarships and honors. Society now expects Wes to succeed, and so he does. Thus the path that the author Wes takes to South Africa on a Rhodes Scholarship and then back to America to become a business leader and well-known author began in military school when he turned around society's expectations of him, and in fact was only possible because of the aid of members of society (such as the assistant director of admissions at Johns Hopkins, Paul White) who had faith in his ability to do well. The final two chapters of "The Other Wes Moore" provide an interesting discussion on the effect that societal expectations have on the path that a person takes through life. 

The third and final section of "The Other Wes Moore" is written primarily to explore the relation between societal expectations and the futures of the two young men. "Paths Taken and Expectations Fulfilled" thus refers to what society believes that each Wes Moore is capable of, as well as how this affects their thoughts and actions as adults. At the end of the story, it is clear that although the two Wes Moores's lives eventually diverged in more and more radical ways, the most important is in how they see themselves and how society sees them. Societal expectations can often be a good thing; for the author Wes Moore, they were largely what gave him the opportunity to succeed. But Moore also understands that there is a darker side. When society expects a man to do nothing with his life, sometimes he feels as though he has no choice. 

"Surrounded" and Parallel Life Stories

Theme: Parallel Life Stories

"'The hands of the law would stay on him for the rest of his life... he'd never figured this. Maybe it was because he'd never thought long term about his life at all. Early losses condition you to believe that short-term plans are always smarter. Now Wes's mind wandered to the long term for the first time. Finally, he could see his future." (page 157)
In the chapter "Surrounded," both Wes Moores experience a life-changing experience. For the first Wes, it is the moment he is convicted to life in prison after being accused of killing a policeman. Not only does this take away all hope for him to have a successful future-- he will be spending the rest of his life in jail with no hope of parole-- it also forces him to change his outlook on the world, similarly to how the second Wes changes his outlook after his experience later in the chapter. Before this point, Wes never considered the long-term impact of the choices that he was making. He grew up in a rough neighborhood where getting the money to eat dinner in a few hours was more important that thinking about plans a month or even a week in advance. Learning that he is going to prison changes all this for Wes-- now he doesn't have to worry about what he's going to do day-to-day to survive, because his meals and protection will most likely be provided for him in jail. Instead, he is forced to consider how he is going to spend the rest of his life-- as Moore writes in the chapter, "he could see his future." This line emphasizes the fact that for the first time in what is perhaps a very long time, Wes has begun to think critically about his life and what he is going to do with it. Because of an incredibly negative experience, his entire outlook on life has changed from one that focuses solely on the short term to one that considers long-term effects.

"We went to school together at the University of Cape Town and studied culture and reconciliation-- a subject for which post-apartheid South Africa had become a living laboratory. Aside from the formal curriculum at the university, we would spend our lime learning the language, learning the country, and learning more about ourselves than we ever imagined." (page 164)
Just like the other Wes Moore, the author Wes has a life-changing experience in the chapter "Surrounded" through his trip to South Africa. The opportunity for him to take the trip means more than just another vacation-- he says that it was a place for him to "[learn] more about ourselves than he ever imagined." While the other Wes Moore's life outlook is changed dramatically because of being sentenced to life in prison, the author Wes also changes his outlook on the world because of the experiences he is able to have in South Africa as a result of his Rhodes Scholar grant. Later in the chapter he describes the things he has learning about race and the luck and privilege he has had even during his childhood in Baltimore after he sees the considerable more run-down shantytowns that impoverished South Africans are forced to live in. He talks about how being in South Africa makes him feel as if he is a small part of a much, much bigger world, where no one would even care if he disappeared. Before his trip to South Africa, Wes isn't quite sure what he wants to do with his life or what his place in the world even is-- his travels and experiences there are ultimately what make him decide what he wants to do and what give him the motivation to ask critical questions about the society he is a part of. In this way, just like the other Wes's experiences changes his life by making him think about what his role is and his future, the author Wes also begins to think about his future and what he really wants to do as a result of his trip.

"His lawyer argued that when Wes was questioned by Baltimore police the day after the crime, before he was announced as a suspect, he was calm, a clear sign of his innocence. His lawyer claimed the police were harassing people in the neighborhood, trying to drum up shaky evidence and confessions." (page 156)
Wes's experiences in the chapter "Surrounded" bear a striking resemblance to those experienced by the other Wes Moore. Wes is portrayed as having been accused wrongly of a crime-- in the passage before the chapter, he tells the author Wes that he was never even there on the day that his brother Tony murdered a policeman. Although the author does not take a strong stance on this position, instead choosing to report the facts more objectively, it seems very plausible that Wes was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. His racial background, his family relationship with Tony, and the neighborhood he lived in all labeled him as a potential perpetrator of the crime before he even stepped into the courtroom. In fact, the event that changes Wes's entire life is less a result of his own personal choices and more a result of his own bad luck-- arguably, he did nothing wrong in the entire crime, but he was the unlucky man who fit the description. For Wes, the bad luck didn't start the day he was convicted of killing the policeman. It started long before that, when he was born into the "wrong" neighborhood and the "wrong" race, labeled guilty before he even learned to talk by a system of institutional racism. Unlike the author of The Other Wes Moore, Wes's luck never changed-- he would wear that label forever. Here it can be seen that what on the surface looks like a random unlucky occurrence-- Wes being wrongfully accused of a crime-- has actually resulted from a long history of his own actions, his situation, and the racist system of law enforcement and criminal justice that purported existed to protect his own life. In the lives of both the other Wes, who is given a Rhodes Scholarship in part because his college adviser is friends with the director and arranges for them to meet, and Wes who is criminally convicted, the course of their lives seems to be decided by just a single event, but in reality the story is much more complex. While for the author Wes his "luck" started when he was enrolled in military academy and became tangible when he got the Rhodes Scholarship, the other Wes's "bad luck" started from the time he was a young boy on the streets and was painfully obvious in the ruling of "guilty" that sentenced him to life in prison.

"Having an advocate on the inside-- someone who had gotten to know me and understood my story on a personal level-- had obviously helped. It made me think deeply about the way privilege and preference work in the work, and how many kids who didn't have "luck" like mine in this instance would find themselves forever outside the ring of power and prestige." (page 160)
Here, Wes's thoughts mirror the experiences of the other Wes Moore as he is convicted for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The author Wes fully recognizes that he has had the opposite experience-- he was in the right place at the right time, and his mother's connections and choice to put him in military school were ultimately what allowed him to find success instead of having a future that mirrored that of the incarcerated Wes Moore. It is clear that Wes understands that this isn't because he worked harder or because he was ultimately a better person. Instead, it was because of "luck," which he explains in the form of privilege and power. Wes hasn't always been privileged-- at the beginning of his life, he was in exactly the same situation as the boy that shared his name. However, his mother's decision to put him in military school at an early age and his resulting experiences labeled him as a "good kid" in society; in essence, he was able to prove himself to be more than just another Wes Moore. This act of fate, or "luck," is ultimately what decides Wes's future as a successful writer who gets the opportunity to go to South Africa on a Rhodes Scholar grant instead of spending the rest of his life behind bars. Thus, though the lives of the two Wes Moores seemingly diverge radically due to their dramatically different life-changing experiences in the chapter "Surrounded," both are affected similarly by "luck" or a lack thereof-- the first Wes by being in the wrong place at the wrong time and thus convicted to life in prison, and the second Wes by being in the right place at the right time and becoming a published author with a bright future.

"In both places, young men go through a daily struggle trying to navigate their way through deadly streets, poverty, and the twin legacies of exclusion and low expectations... Here, burgeoning manhood was guided and celebrated through a rite of passage. At home, burgeoning manhood was a trigger for apprehension. In the United States, we see these same faces, and our reflex is to pick up our pace and cross the street." (page 170)
The above passage highlights both the similarities and differences between the life that the author Wes has experienced and that of the other Wes Moore. Wes is talking about boys who have undergone the ritual manhood ceremony in Africa and how this affects the way they carry themselves and how they are seen in society-- how while their increased pride and confidence is seen as a good thing in their home villages, it is something to be feared in the United States. Interestingly, however, Wes does not put himself in the shoes of these young boys when describing them, but instead in the position of one of the people who fear them: he says that "our reflex is to pick up our pace and cross the street" (emphasis mine) instead of distancing himself from the subject by using the possessive pronoun "their." This choice, though it seems simple, actually highlights the differences in the parallel life stories of the two Wes Moores. The author Wes no longer sees himself as the same boy he was in West Baltimore or the Bronx, a dangerous person to be afraid of. In his own eyes, as reflected through his description of himself as the subject that fears rather than the object that is feared, he is a respectable member of society just like everyone else. The same is not true for the other Wes Moore. Despite the fact that they have had incredibly similar childhoods, while the author Wes has separated himself from the boy he was "back then," the other Wes never has. He still sees himself as the same person: a drug runner, a gang member, a danger to the society that Wes is now a part of. Although they come from the same backgrounds, the same childhood conflicts, suddenly the other Wes has become a person that the author Wes would cross the street to avoid. This difference highlights a dramatic rift in the similar life stories of the two Wes Moores, the place where their two lives diverge even more than their separate experiences as a successful scholar and perpetual prisoner. The real change is in the way that they see themselves, specifically in the way that the author Wes sees himself in the chapter "Surrounded."

"The Land That God Forgot" and Faith

Theme: Faith

"Powell, in his pragmatic way, wanted what I wanted: a fair shot. A place to develop himself. A code that would instill discipline, restrain passion, and order his steps. A way to change the world without first unleashing the whirlwind." (page 132)
At the beginning of the chapter, the faith that the author Wes Moore displays is not one of religion, but a faith in more secular teachings. Moore has confidence in Colin Powell's worldview-- more than that, he has faith that the world is a good place, that it is not necessary to destroy all existing institutions ("unleashing the whirlwind") to make a positive change. Throughout the chapter, Moore describes his faith in the "code that would instill discipline, restrain passion, and order his steps": the military life, which gives him the level of rigor and discipline he needs. At military school, Wes has learned to be punctual and to follow orders, to operate with success within the already existing structures of life instead of breaking outside the box to find a new order that is completely accommodating to him. Thus his faith becomes a military-like faith, one that works based on clear rules and definite structure. He believes in Powell's teachings so much because the military is what lifted him out of a downhill track and into a path to success, and he has faith that it can do the same for other young boys just like him.

"The notion that life is transient, that it can come and go quickly, unexpectedly, had been with me since I had seen my own father die. In the Bronx, the idea of life's impermanence underlined everything for kids my age-- it drove some of us to a paralyzing apathy, stopped us from even thinking too far into the future... But I started to see it a little differently that day. Life's impermanence, I realized, is what makes every single day so precious. It's what shapes our time here. It's what makes it so important that not a single moment be missed." (page 133)
Here, Moore displays faith in a different belief system: the idea that every day is precious, and that the unpredictable nature of life should not discourage one from living each moment to its fullest. The influence of his childhood in the Bronx is evident in this faith-- he cites as an incredibly influential example his father's unexpected death. However, unlike other boys who have only had bad experiences with the impermanence of life, boys who have grown up with neighborhoods like the Bronx or West Baltimore as the only home they have ever known, Moore has had experience with a different type of life. One of the most important unpredictable changes in his life was his mother's choice to put him in military school, which he neither expected nor exercised any form of control over. This unexpected change was ultimately one that would change his life and career-- if it had not occurred, his future may have ended up looking a lot more like the other Wes Moore's. For this reason, Moore has learned to embrace life's unexpectedness. He is not apathetic because, unlike the boys in his old neighborhood, he has experienced the positive things that can come from dramatic life changes and not solely the negative ones, and thus has faith in the fact that his time is precious and that life's impermanence can lead to exciting new opportunities.

"As we were seconds away from taking the leap, the multitude of prayers that left the plane were palpable. I stared at the yellow light at the front of the plane, waiting for it to turn green; I spoke with God, asking Him to watch over me and the others in the plane. The excessively hot and cramped conditions, coupled with the fact that some of the toughest schools in the military take place at Fort Benning, have earned the base the nickname 'the land that God forgot.' I was hoping He'd remember us today." (page 135)
There is an important distinction between the title of Fort Benning and the faith of those who still inhabit it. Though Wes Moore and his fellow soldiers have jokingly nicknamed the place where they are preparing to become paratroopers 'the land that God forgot,' they themselves have obviously not forgotten God: Moore writes that he could feel in the very atmosphere of the plane "the multitude of prayers" as everyone prepared to jump. The fact that everyone in the plane is praying means that God, or some form of god, has a special significance to them: they have faith in the power that he can save their lives. Moore himself prays seriously to God for safe passage, writing that he hopes that "He'd remember us today." Buried in this line is the hope of salvation: even if God is not always at the base, or forgets it for brief periods of time, in Wes's mind there is always a chance of remembrance. He has faith in the fact that God will be there when he needs Him-- if not during the tedious struggles of everyday life at the base, then at least in truly life-threatening situations like jumping out of a plane. The irony in the passage is clear: in the very base nicknamed 'the land that God forgot,' the presence of God is undeniable even to Wes, as shown through his descriptions of his prayers and the prayers of others.

"Where was God when people didn't make enough money to feed their families? Where was God when kids were selling rocks at twelve years old, and their parents encouraged it because the kids were the main breadwinners in the home?...'Fuck God,' he said, drawing in a lungful of smoke. 'If He does exist, He sure doesn't spend any time in West Baltimore.'" (page 140)
Although both the author Wes and the other Wes Moore ruminate on the fact that God is not present in their current locations, the way that they display their faith is undeniably different. While the author Wes's description of 'the land that God forgot' makes clear that there is a God who does exist, and opens the possibility of future remembrance, the other Moore's faith is much less hopeful. Wes has never had an opportunity for salvation akin to the author Wes's life-changing time spent at boarding school. He has spent his entire life in the same type of neighborhood, engaging in the same activities with the same people. Unlike the author, who has seen a better future for himself through the words of Colin Powell and the institutional benefits he has received, Wes's only reference point is the day-to-day suffering he sees in his community, the atrocities that children and families face without any support, secular or otherwise. Thus, Wes's statement "If He does exist" not only calls into question the fact that God is in West Baltimore-- it questions the very existence of God Himself. Wes's faith in God, not just in His redemptive powers but in the question of whether He exists at all, is virtually nonexistent. This lack of religious faith is also seen in the expletive he uses to describe God. "'Fuck God'" is in no way equivalent to the author Wes's hopeful prayers; it does not leave the door open for redemption. Cursing God is not a way to ensure that he will save one's life in the future-- rather, it is Moore's assertion that God does not exist and will never exist in West Baltimore or anywhere that he goes. "'Fuck God'" takes away God's power: Moore is not scared of being smote or somehow killed by the wrath of God because he knows that it is impossible; that would mean that God would have to care about him. Though the two Moores at first seem to share similar religious beliefs, the other Wes's utter lack of faith compared to the author Wes's acknowledgement of God and hope for salvation becomes clear through a deeper reading of the passage.

"To Wes, 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. He'd learned skills, gained confidence, and finally felt his life could go in a different direction. He stayed at the Job Corps Center so he could provide a better life for his kids. He stayed for his mother, who sat home watching Tony continue moving in and out of the criminal justice system. He stayed at the Job Corps Center for himself." (pages 143-4)
Wes may not believe in God, but he displays his faith in other ways. The house he builds for his daughter as the culminating project at the Job Corps Center is a tangible representation of the system of faith he feels with his children, his mother, and his own hard work and effort. For Wes, God is not what gives him the strength to live from day to day: rather, it is his own strength and perseverance. The house that he builds is "a daily reminder of why he was there," just as God is to people all over the world. Wes has grown up in a troubled neighborhood, and he has spent his whole life being blamed for the things that he does-- he was unable to finish school because he had missed so many days and his teachers were unwilling to teach him, and he has already been labeled a failure by police officers and principals and to some degree his own parents. Building a house for his daughter is a way for him to prove to himself that he can create something good. Moore writes that it is "more than just a project to complete"-- rather, it is something that he can do with his own hands and hard work to connect himself back to his family, himself, and even his larger community. The project of building the house literally becomes Moore's faith, if only because it represents so much more than just a structure made out of wood. It represents that Moore can have a future-- that for the first time, people don't have to blame him for doing something wrong, but can congratulate him for being at the top of his class, for doing something that no one else could do. It represents his family connections: by working so hard to build something for her daughter, he can prove to her and to himself that he is invested in her future, that he has a purpose in life beyond selling drugs and being in a gang. Thus, despite the fact that Wes does not believe in God, he is able to find faith in building his daughter's house in the chapter "The Land That God Forgot."

"Choices and Second Chances": Title Justification Essay

The Other Wes Moore is the true story of two boys who shared the same name and hometown, but very different futures: while one found success in business and academics, the other is serving a life sentence in prison for murder. The book is divided into three sections that tell the stories of how the Wes Moores's paths diverged in such dramatic ways. The second, "Choices and Second Chances" focuses on the consequences of the choices that each Wes made during their teenage years in Baltimore and military school, which shape their futures in strikingly different ways. Although the two boys choose the courses of their lives in many cases, they are also affected by circumstances that they have no control over. The title "Choices and Second Chances" is appropriate for the author Wes Moore's purpose as it demonstrates his feelings about the role that fate and free will had in his and the other Wes's childhoods.

The title "Choices and Second Chances" emphasizes the importance of both fate and free will in the lives of the two Wes Moores. Throughout the three chapters, it is clear that Moore's main purpose is to demonstrate how both fate, represented by the phrase "second chances," and free will, represented by the word "choices," impact the lives of each character. Initially, fate in the form of situations that neither boy has control over is a deciding factor in the path that their lives take. The other Wes Moore grows up in inner city Baltimore with a mother who is often absent. His older brother, Tony, is heavily involved in gangs and drug operations even before he goes to high school. Wes does not choose to be born in this environment, but because he is, he is quickly indoctrinated into Tony's lifestyle. Unlike children who grow up in rich suburbs or "nicer" neighborhoods of town, he has to learn how to fight and make a name for himself. This is seen in the chapter "Lost," where Wes and some fellow members of a drug operation try to shoot a man who attacked him. Moore writes, "Tony's words rang through his mind. Send a message" (104). Although Wes makes the deliberate choice to shoot the man, thus exercising his free will, he has been taught to do so from the day he was born. For this reason, much of his decision can also be said to have been directed by fate, the "chances" that the author Moore writes about. Wes did not choose to have Tony teach him how to fight; he was young and did not know any better, and yet this experience is one that continues to affect him into his adult life. In the case of the other Wes Moore, his fate shapes the choices he makes-- in other words, his fate decides what he does with his free will. This theme is also seen in the sections concerning the author Wes Moore. Here the word "second chances," instead of being used to describe "chance" as a synonym for "fate" or something out of one's control, is put in a more literal context. Wes is forced by his mother to go to military school in the chapter "Lost." He does not have any choice in the matter-- even when he pleads with his mother to leave, she gives him an adamant no. This display of fate, defined as something that Wes has no control over, has a dramatic effect on his life in the following chapters. Instead of staying on the streets and joining gangs like the other Wes Moore, he begins to consider his place in the world and what his parents did to get him there. This is seen in the chapter "Hunted," where he chooses not to fight a drunk man who is threatening him after thinking about what the ramifications might be. Here, "chance" literally gives Wes a second chance at life-- a chance to not get sucked up into a life of crime and drug dealing. And, interestingly, this second chance gives him the opportunity to make more productive and healthy choices for himself, like the one that he makes to walk away instead of engaging with the drunk man. The second three chapters of the story provide an insightful interplay of fate, both good and bad, and the choices that each character makes. 

The second section of "The Other Wes Moore" is written primarily to explore the relation between fate and free will in deciding the futures of the two young men. "Choices and Second Chances" thus refers to the choices that each Wes makes, as well as the "chance" in the form of fate that can both give them new opportunities and take them away. As the story progresses, it becomes more and more difficult to distinguish clearly between which choices are dictated by the unchangeable backgrounds of the two characters, and which events that seem like "fate" are in reality shaped by choices. Free will can often cause unwanted consequences, such as in the case of the other Wes Moore. However, it is clear that the author Wes Moore believes that it can also give tremendous hope for the future. 

"Hunted" and Fate vs. Free Will

Theme: Fate and Free Will

"Wes found another option: he decided to make himself scarce. In the mornings while Nicey was at work, Wes would play videogames in this house and then head out to check on his drug operation. When she was home in the evenings or the early morning, Wes would normally be out, "trying to find a job," as he would tell her." (page 110)
In this passage, it seems apparent that Wes's future is guided by his own free will rather than by fate. He comes into high school disadvantaged through no apparent fault of his own, because the teachers are unprepared to teach him with overcrowded classrooms and limited time to spend on students who have fallen far behind. However, instead of trying to change this, Wes deliberately makes choices that destroy his chances for a better future. He could spend his time trying to catch up with the things he missed in school or searching for a job as his aunt Nicey suggests, but instead he plays video games and deals drugs. By choosing to do things for his own enjoyment rather than thinking about their consequences, Wes ruins his own possible potential. Instead of making the best of his circumstances, he resigns himself to a "fate" that is really dictated by his own thoughtless actions.

"The man threw up red flags, but Wes had dealt to people like that before and gotten away with it. He saw the man approach another corner boy and then walk away. Wes got antsy; the movie was starting soon, and if he was going to change his mind and make the sale, he'd better do it fast. He couldn't stop thinking about the money he could make off that sale-- almost exactly enough to take care of this date. The logic felt right." (page 113)
Wes's behavior throughout the chapter often falls in a shady gray area between being dictated by fate and by free will. In this section, he decides to sell drugs to a man who looks suspiciously like an undercover cop despite his better judgement. This is a choice that he makes, not one that some higher power forces upon him, which leads to his subsequent arrest. The fact that Wes chooses to do something risky while fully aware of the potential consequences indicates that his own free will is what defines his future. However, the idea of "free" will in this situation is tricky. Although Wes had control of many immediate choices in his life, there were many other things that he had absolutely no control over. He did not choose, for example, to be born in inner-city Baltimore to a mostly-absent mother with an older brother who was already involved in drug trafficking. Being part of drugs and gang life was eventually a choice that Wes had to make for himself, but how much of a choice was it when he was indoctrinated into that way of life from the day he was born? His brother Tony's escapades and the kids around him were all that he knew growing up, and so they were all that he had to emulate. This attitude is seen clearly in his choice to sell drugs to the suspicious man-- he doesn't consider the possible future ramifications, but instead thinks about how it will give him enough money to pay for the date he is about to have. Wes is programmed to think this way because of the environment he has grown up in. He is used to living in poverty, where thinking about tomorrow is useless because he is busy thinking about what he's going to do to get dinner two hours from now. This kind of mindset, which isn't one that he has consciously chosen, directly affects Wes's behavior and future throughout the course of the chapter, proving that fate also has an important influence in his life.

"Think about it, man. It's simple math. Only 60 players are chosen in the NBA draft every year. There are 341 Division One schools, each with 13 players on the roster. This makes 4,433 college players who could declare eligibility for the NBA draft. These numbers don't even include Division Two or Three players. Or international players, for that matter." (page 116)
Here Wes's uncle makes an example about the significance of fate in deciding his future. Wes loves playing basketball and wants to be a professional basketball player, but his uncle knows that even if he practices as hard as he can, there is a very good chance that he'll never make it to the NBA. He talks about the slim chances of becoming a professional basketball player even for those who play Division One basketball in college to prove that being successful in sports is not always about free will. Every single one of the Division One players may have spent their entire lives training to be in the NBA, and they may be at the very peak of their personal fitness and abilities, but none of that matters in the end: only 60 of them will be chosen in the NBA draft no matter what. In this arena, fate is what dictates the future of the 4,433 basketball players, because their own personal choices can only take them so far.

"Justin's mother had Hodgkin's disease, a rare form of cancer. The survival rate is around 90 percent for those who discover it early. Unfortunately, his mother was in the other 10 percent... Justin was now spending his mornings with her at the hospital, his afternoons at school, then running to basketball practice and back to the hospital. His grades fell dramatically as the burden began to wear him down." (page 117)
A dramatic twist of fate has a lasting effect on Justin's family life and his grades. Neither he nor his mother have control over her cancer: it is a rare illness that is more dangerous in her case because of her late diagnosis. Although Justin does not directly suffer from the same cancer, his own life takes a serious blow from his mother's illness. He is forced to skip school to visit her in the hospital and spends every day shuffling from place to place, trying to keep everything together and stay on top of all of the things that he has to do. Of course, Justin could choose to drop something in order to free up his schedule, like stop going to basketball practice or only visit his mother every other day, but he can do nothing to cure his mother's illness. The cancer that has caused his grades to fall is something that he did not cause not has any control over. Here fate has a severe impact on Justin's life: because of his mom's unexpected illness, he begins to do poorly in school, which may hurt his chances to get into college or even to find a well-paying job and support a family in the future.

"But I had to let this one go. I had to look at the bigger picture. My assailant was unknown, unnamed, and in a car. This was not a fair fight, and the best-case scenario was nowhere near as probable as the worst-case scenario. If I was successful, who knew how the fight would've ended? If I failed, who knew how the fight would've ended? I thought about my mother and how she would feel if this escalated any further. I though about my father and the name he chose for me." (page 121)
In this passage, Wes faces a choice similar to the one that the other Wes Moore faced at the beginning of the chapter. He can choose to do something risky that could potentially get him in trouble, or he could stay safe and avoid conflict. Wes may not have done anything to be put in this situation, but the choice is his about what he will do about it. Unlike the other Wes Moore, Wes doesn't just consider what will happen in the near future. He thinks about his parents, two of his biggest role models, and what they would think about his choice. He also considers his two options and what the consequences of each one would be. Doing this allows Wes to use his free will to make a calm, rational choice that has a positive effect on his future. Instead of possibly getting into trouble or getting seriously injured by a drunk man, he gets himself out of a bad situation and gains life experience by doing so.

"Lost" and Role Models

Theme: Role Models

"Paralleling my mom's insistence that I attend Riverdale because John F. Kennedy had once gone to school there, she was won over to Valley Forge when she heard that General Norman Schwarzkopf was a graduate. This was right after the first Gulf War and General Schwarzkopf was seen as the second coming of General MacArthur. There was military history in my family, but for them, as for many immigrant families, American heroes-- and the schools they attended-- carried a certain cachet." (page 91)
The importance of role models in Wes's family is introduced for the first time in the chapter "Lost." Wes's mother feels that because she comes from an immigrant background, the people with military history in her family are not good enough to be role models for her son. Her choices for his education are entirely based on people who she thinks are sufficiently accomplished for this role, Americans like John F. Kennedy and Normal Schwarzkopf. It is clear in the above passage that her hope is that by attending a school that such an American hero has attended, Wes has potential to become an American hero too. She wants him to go to a school where the students are positive role models of courage, justice, and Americanism as opposed to the negative role model of a typical inner-city school student.

"The five minutes went fast, and Colonel Batt signaled it was time for me to hang up and go to bed. "I love you, and I am proud of you. And, Wes, it's time to stop running," my mother said as I hung up." (page 96)
Wes's mother is an important role model for him throughout the book. After the death of his father, she has had to carry the family all by herself, and constantly acts to do what is best for Wes. Here she acts as a role model by convincing Wes that he should stay in military school, telling him that the way he is currently living will never be successful. Without Wes's mother's actions, it is very possible that he could have grown up to be exactly like the other Wes and spend the rest of his life in jail-- or, as his mother says, keep running forever. His mother ensures that he will have a better future by making him stay in military school. Unlike the other Wes, who has no positive role models in his life, she is a beacon of strength and love that inspires him to keep trying and not to give up on his future.

"I had never seen a man, a peer, demand that much respect from his people. I had seen Shea demand respect in the neighborhood, but this was different. This was real respect, the kind you can't beat or scare out of people." (page 96)
One of the first positive role models in the chapter is the military captain Ty Hill, who goes to Wes's military school. Wes has grown up in bad neighborhoods with kids who get respect by being gang leaders and drug dealers. At military school he is able to get a new kind of role model: someone who commands respect because they deserve respect, not because everyone is scared of what they will do if they aren't respected. Having Ty as a role model is instrumental in changing Wes's future, because he realizes that he has more that he can aspire to be besides a gang leader. There are better ways that he can command respect, like doing well in military school and becoming a captain like Ty. Learning that there are other, more positive role models besides the neighborhood kids helps Wes become a better person and avoid a troubled future like the other Wes Moore.

"Wes's nonexistent relationship with his father probably contributed to his seeming indifference about becoming a father himself. All he knew was his mom. He had no idea what his role would be in this new situation-- he wasn't even sure he had a role." (page 101)
Here the other Wes's father acts as a negative role model. As a young boy forced into the position of being a father, Wes doesn't have an example of what to do because his own father has never been there for him. His mother is the only one who has had a role in bringing him up; his father is remembered only as an alcoholic and negative force in Mary Moore's life. Because Wes doesn't have a positive role model of a father to look up to, he instead spends his time going out with different girls instead of staying loyal to and taking care of Alicia, who he has gotten pregnant. The lack of a positive role model not only affects Wes and his actions, but also Alicia's well-being; now she too must be like Mary and raise her family by herself with an absent and disinterested father.

"As he left his room, he shoved a clip into the gun and cocked the slide hammer back, fully loading the weapon... Wes could only see red. He was blind with rage. Instincts kicked in. Tony's words rang through his mind. Send a message." (page 104)
As his older brother, Tony is one of Wes's biggest role models. The fight training that Tony gave him as a young child in Baltimore has a dramatic impact on his life choices: here, in a pivotal moment of his life, Wes uses his brother's advice to justify killing a man. Tony is one of the only role models Wes knows, although ironically he tries as hard as he can not to be one, constantly attempting to give Wes the life that he didn't have and dissuading him from following in his own footsteps. The attitude that he has given Wes about fighting for your honor is one that Wes has taken to heart, as is seen in the above passage. Tony's role as a model for Wes's behavior is ultimately a negative one that leads to Wes shooting Ray and going to jail-- despite all of his efforts to change his brother, he ends up becoming just like him.