Reflective Journal Response

The Other Wes Moore Ch. 7 and 8 Journal Prompts

The following is a list of questions related to the assigned reading in the novel, choose one or more of these prompts (or one of your own choosing) and write a reflective journal response (at least 350 words) using the chart that follows. You must include a quotation AND its location in the novel as part of your response. You will use the chart to complete the blog assignment.

Possible Journal Prompts:

On page 126, Wes, the author, writes that, “The expectations that others place on us form our expectations of ourselves.” What does this quotation mean and how does it speak to the importance of personal and public accountability?

On page 133, Wes, the author, writes that Colonel Murphy left Valley Forge for cancer treatment and said, “When it is time for you to leave this school, leave your job, or even leave this earth, you make sure you have worked hard to make sure it mattered you were ever here.” Does this sound like good advice? Explain how it might pertain to either of the Wes’s or your own life?

Things change very quickly for the other Wes once he returns from the Job Corps, including the different pressures he faced and his decision to go back to his life on the streets. Reflect on a time in your life when you made decisions that you regretted and what you did to move past them?

On page 147, Wes and Tony rob a jewelry store. What were their goals in doing this? Do you think they were focusing on short term or long term goals when they made the decision to rob the jewelry store?

As the other Wes Moore prepares to spend the rest of his life in prison, Wes, the author, writes, “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.” Do you think short term or long term goals are more important? Why? Use examples from the book and your own personal experiences to defend your position.

Reflect on this quote from the book, “…to simply walk along the pristine Inner Harbor or go see the Orioles in action without understanding that all of Baltimore is not downtown would be…misleading. The truth is that there are two Baltimores. Almost every other major city in this country leads the same double life” (Moore, pp. 158-159). What is the double life to which the author is referring? What are the factors that you think have led to this?

On page 161, Wes writes, “for the rest of us—those who snuck in despite coming from the margins—the mission has to be to pull up others behind us. That’s what Paul White did for me, and it changed my life.” What does this quotation mean and do you agree with it? Are we responsible for others or only for ourselves? Explain your reasoning.