The Scarlet Letter And The Other Wes Moore - 1238 Words

The average person encounters hundreds, maybe thousands, of people throughout their lives. They come into contact with family, members of their society, teammates, coworkers, and more. What is often ignored, however, is the toll these people can take on someone’s life. This is a central idea in the novels The Other Wes Moore and The Scarlet Letter. The Other Wes Moore follows the lives of two young boys into adulthood and discusses why their lives turned out so differently, despite coming from such similar backgrounds. The author Wes Moore proposes that maybe it was due to the influences that each boy’s role model’s had. A similar idea is illustrated in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, which tells the tale of Hester Prynne and†¦show more content†¦Moore uses indirect characterization to show readers the influence that â€Å"The Other Wes’† mother had on him, â€Å"She was only twenty seven years old, and despite having two sons, . . . she was still young enough to enjoy partying, dancing, and being noticed by men. . . much to the chagrin of her family and friends who ended up watching the boys so many nights† (Moore 19), because of her actions, she is characterized as neglectful and irresponsible. The woman’s â€Å"activities† not only serve as a negative example for her son, but they have significant psychological effects on him as well. This combined with the absence of his father inspired actions which lead to him being incarcerated for the rest of his life. Wes, on the other hand, despite having a similar background, had very different role models. Wes’ mother had done everything to keep him out of trouble. She even forced him to attend a military school hundreds of miles away after he got into trouble with the police and slacking off in school. Wes had his grandparents, his mother, and leaders at military school to guide him on the right path. He despised his schoo l at first, but eventually we can see that the environment and the people played a key role in making him successful. Moore illustrates this change through imagery, â€Å" My back stood straight, and my sentences now ended with sir or ma am. My military garrison cap was intentionally a size too big, forcing me to keep my head up, walking tallerShow MoreRelatedThe Scarlet Letter And The Other Wes Moore841 Words   |  4 Pagesstories around the same theme, there is an undeniable importance in the message being delivered. One of the authors bringing this message about is author of The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hawthorne tells the story of Hester Prynne, a Puritan women in seventeenth century Boston, Hester, having committed adultery, is branded with a scarlet ‘A’ on her chest. The story describes the animosity that society feels towards her and her daughter Pearl, through the story Hester redefines the meaning ofRead MoreScarlet Letter And The Other Wes Moore Analysis989 Words   |  4 Pagesthem are far-reaching.† He was correct because every microscopic action that we commit has an unintended consequence. Some consequences, are good. Other consequences, on the other hand, can be miserable. In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and The Other Wes Moore, by Wes Moore, both stories exhibit that each choice a person makes has a consequence, good or bad. Each book is based around choices; The Scarlet Letter narrates the life of a young puritan woman, Hester Prynne, who committed adulteryRead MoreThe Other Wes Moore Similes Analysis745 Words   |  3 PagesPresent day and Puritan communities use physical consequences as a result of unlawful actions. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore use similes and atmosphere to show that physical consequences result from unlawful actions. The Scarlet Letter and The Other Wes Moore use similes to describe the characters during their physical consequences. In The Scarlet Letter, a simile is used to describe Hester Prynne as she comes out of jail. When Hester was released fromRead MoreThe Other Wes Moore Critical Analysis767 Words   |  4 Pagesforgiveness, which is a recurring theme in the novel, The Other Wes Moore and the classic, The Scarlet Letter. The theme of second chances is supported throughout these narratives using the literary elements of imagery and stream of consciousness. The subject matter of second chances is detected in the novel The Other Wes Moore through the use of stream of consciousness and imagery. After he had hit many low points in his life, the other Wes decided to change for the better and join the jobs corpsRead MoreAnalysis Of Nathaniel HawthornesThe Other Wes Moore, And The Other Wess Moore795 Words   |  4 Pagesharmony and diminishes the song,† (Vera Nazarian). People let others control them and their actions which causes serious consequences and very few virtues. Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter, wrote a novel about a woman, Hester Prynne who has committed the most dreadful of sins. When her story is revealed to the civilization, ignominy follows her and the ones closest to her. The Other Wes Moore, written by Wes Moore, it the chilling story of two men who were raised in comparableRead More The Double Life Exposed in The Scarlet Letter Essay1497 Words   |  6 Pagesin The Scarlet Letter    Irish novelist Brian Moore observed, There comes a point in many peoples lives when they can no longer play the role they have chosen for themselves.   From Hollywood movie stars to professional athletes, people have and will continue to lead false lives, under the public spotlight, concealing their personal travails.   In literature, the preceding statement has held true numerous times, in works such as Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet LetterRead MoreNathaniel Hawthorne s The Scarlet Letter1850 Words   |  8 Pagesis Hester Prynne. As part of NPR s series, In Character, my colleague, Andrea Seabrook, shows how this Puritan woman is still very much alive today. ANDREA SEABROOK: Hester Prynne is the protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthorne s magnum opus The Scarlet Letter. Any serious literary scholar will tell you that she is one of the first strong women in American literature and is still among the most important. She s veiled(ph) and complex and deep. So much so, says Professor Jamie Barlowe of the UniversityRead More Displacement and Don Juan Essay5873 Words   |  24 PagesDisplacement and Don Juan Unlike the fitfully epic Don Juan , I’d like to begin in medias res , with the anger of Lord Byron. We join him thick in the struggle with a central concern of DJ’s composition: the perils of transmission: Pray when I send you a parcel or packet—do acknowledge it—I care nothing about my letters or your answers—I only want to know, when I have taken trouble about a thing that it has arrived. 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These bulletins were sent out to Kansas residents, as well as made available in other means such as libraries. Families in the Southeast Kansas coal mining towns are more likely to have lacked resources to be able to receive the bulletin, therefore receiving less information about the importance of prenatal care. Another barrier is