There is a sickness destroying lives on every surface of the world, which can be eradicated with out spending a single dollar or loosing a single life to any medical trial. That disease is the vitriolic way in which the world treats its citizens. The world has an innate way of tearing down others for the sake of succeeding but success is possible with out the destruction of the individual. The author Wes Moore had a healthy self-image reinforced through strong influential characters in his life and stable relationships. The other Wes Moore however was not as fortunate as the man whose namesake he shares; he was conditioned with a negative image strengthened by the social situations he engaged in. Self-image plays a monumental roll in the success of a person and the world adds to that in either of two ways: with compassion, unyielding support, and positive expectations or the world uses harsh criticism, harmful judgments and negative impressions. Self-esteem is critical in respect to the development of young children in to functioning adults. No one chooses the situation he or she is born into whether it be a life of country clubs and tennis practice or a life of slums and fighting. Further more a person’s self-image is influenced by how he or she is treated as a child awakening the age old ‘Nature vs. Nurture’. In this situation it is adequate to allow nurture to play a major roll in the development of self-confidence. The University of Texas at Austin aggregates the importance of childhood in saying, “our past experiences, even the things we don’t usually think about, continue to impact our daily life in the form of an “inner voice”… continuously repeating childhood messages to us”. Not everyone hears this “voice” like Pinocchio hears Jiminy Cricket but everyone has a innate sense of direction given to them by their past. High self-esteem is generated through rigorous use of positive reinforcement of a child’s self-worth. Having an opinion that matters to his or her parents, receiving adequate attention, and having a positive mentality towards the failures of the child will all contribute extensively to his or her healthy self-image. The other end of the spectrum is littered with examples of harsh criticisms, abuse either mental or physical, and lack of dignity through scrupulous acts of ridicule and judgment. The other Wes Moore picked up some of the later during his time in a rough gang like setting where only the tough survive. He became what is called the Rebel or someone who resists any tries made by an authority figure to better the person. Often resulting in blaming others for mistakes or breaking rules (or ultimately laws). Each version of self-esteem results in a different action taken by a person and that action results in a consequence and often the consequences of behavior like that instilled in the other Wes Moore is problematic relationships and higher rates of substance abuse. These actions work against the overall goal in a vicious cycle by reaffirming the preconceived notion of low self-esteem. Dealing with low self-esteem in a cutthroat business like drug dealing makes monsters out of men.
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Wes learned fast to use an indifferent expression like that described in the book as,” The ice grille… A look of blank hostility that masks two intense feelings… But the tough façade is just a way to hide a deeper pain or depression that kids don’t know how to deal with. A bottomless chasm of insecurity and self-doubt that gnaws at them”. Although his mother did the best she could but Wes never learned the proper coping techniques needed to handle his crippling self-doubts. This caused him to revert the aforementioned mask much like that mentioned in “We Wear the Mask” by Paul Laurence Dunbar, “We wear the mask that grins and lies/…With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,/…Why should the world be over wise,/… In counting all our tears and sighs?/” Wes learned early on to hide his feelings of weakness from a world he was struggling to find his place in. One problem that plagued the other Wes Moore was the projection of others. It can be explained as, “ projecting undesirable feelings or emotions onto someone else, rather than admitting to or dealing with
Wes learned fast to use an indifferent expression like that described in the book as,” The ice grille… A look of blank hostility that masks two intense feelings… But the tough façade is just a way to hide a deeper pain or depression that kids don’t know how to deal with. A bottomless chasm of insecurity and self-doubt that gnaws at them”. Although his mother did the best she could but Wes never learned the proper coping techniques needed to handle his crippling self-doubts. This caused him to revert the aforementioned mask much like that mentioned in “We Wear the Mask” by Paul Laurence Dunbar, “We wear the mask that grins and lies/…With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,/…Why should the world be over wise,/… In counting all our tears and sighs?/” Wes learned early on to hide his feelings of weakness from a world he was struggling to find his place in. One problem that plagued the other Wes Moore was the projection of others. It can be explained as, “ projecting undesirable feelings or emotions onto someone else, rather than admitting to or dealing with