63 pages • 2 hours read
Wes MooreThe Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 2010A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Essay Topics
Compare the childhoods of the two Wes Moores. What similarities and differences do you note? How did these factors contribute to each man’s future?
Examine the structure of the book. How does each chapter illustrate a specific concept? Why did the author organize the book this way?
The author states near the end of the book that his future was not determined by his changes of location. Describe the environments the author grew up in, and discuss how they contributed to his success.
“Our blood-soaked and atrocity-littered past was important but […] the future didn’t have to be its slave” (162). With reference to this quotation, draw parallels between the boys’ past and its effect on their futures.
The subtitle of the book is “One Name, Two Fates.” What role did fate play in Wes and the author’s lives? Can the outcome of anyone’s life be wholly attributed to fate? Why or why not?
Wes remembers his time at Job Corps positively, saying it was the first time in his life when he felt a sense of purpose. Why didn’t his experience there have a lasting effect on his life?
The author argues that mindset made more of a difference in his life than location. Based on your observations of the text, do you agree or disagree with his assessment? If location mattered as little as the author suggests, why did Valley Forge Military Academy have such a lasting effect on his life?
City streets and street life receive much focus in the book. Compare the streets to other locations detailed in the text, like Valley Forge Military Academy or Job Corps. What do city streets represent in the text? What role do they play in each man’s life?
The book covers the author’s study abroad time in South Africa. What lessons did he learn there? How have those lessons affected his mindset and his life’s work? How might you apply these lessons in your own life?
The book strongly emphasizes the important role mentors play in the lives of young children. Consider the mentors featured in the book. Who were they, and how did they influence the boys’ lives?
