"Tony had started dealing drugs in those shadowy hallways of Murphy Homes before he was ten. By the time he was fourteen, Tony had built a fierce reputation in the neighborhood".
The author shows that since Tony's mom is working all the time, he has been involved with drugs. This reveals that when less parental attention is given, there is no one to apprehend them from doing bad things. This can cause perfectly good people to turn into criminals when proper attention is not given to them which is exemplified into Tony's situation.
The author shows that since Tony's mom is working all the time, he has been involved with drugs. This reveals that when less parental attention is given, there is no one to apprehend them from doing bad things. This can cause perfectly good people to turn into criminals when proper attention is not given to them which is exemplified into Tony's situation.
"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."
This quote reveals that without proper attention of parents, kids can get insecure about themselves when nobody is there to reassure them. To cope with this insecurity they try to act tough instead of revealing their true feelings. Sometimes while putting up this façade, it can lead to violence which turn kids into criminals. This situation also revolves around the developing theme of less parental attention can lead to criminal activity because it demonstrates exactly how less parental reassurance can impact one's life negatively.
2. Mentors usually want to give a better life for the person they are mentoring.
"Tony, by contrast, was desperately trying to give his little brother information he thought he needed, the kind of information that Tony never got".
The quote shows how Tony wants Wes to have a better start than he got when he was Wes's age. This develops the theme that mentors usually want to give a better life for the person they are mentoring because it shows that people want to give others a better chance than they ever got. It reveals that humans want to feel better about their mistakes by making sure other people do not commit the same mistakes. Therefore by showing people what and what not to do, one is living through that other person making them feel better about themselves and happy to see the person they mentored succeed.
" Baltimore City had a 70 percent dropout rate at the time. Tony had already joined that statistic; Mary wanted to keep Wes away from the same fate."
This quote also develops the same theme in a similar sense. Tony had already dropped out of school and Mary mistakenly let that happen. Therefore to feel better about her mistake she makes sure Wes stays in school. This applies to the theme because it demonstrates how people learn from there mistakes and apply them by showing other people how not to make the mistakes that they made.
This quote also develops the same theme in a similar sense. Tony had already dropped out of school and Mary mistakenly let that happen. Therefore to feel better about her mistake she makes sure Wes stays in school. This applies to the theme because it demonstrates how people learn from there mistakes and apply them by showing other people how not to make the mistakes that they made.
3. Education affects the amount of opportunities one might have.
"He was a veteran of the drug game at eighteen. He’d graduated from foot soldier and now had other people working for him. School was a distant memory; Tony hadn’t seen the inside of a classroom on a regular basis since eighth grade."
This quote touches on theme of education affecting opportunities. Since Tony has not really been in school regularly since 8th grade and has been more committed in the 'drug game', his options further in life regarding a profession are limited. This develops the theme because it gives an example of someone limiting their choices. If one does not go on to further educate themselves, getting a a steady, well paid job will be tough. Without a good job financial situations can be hard and on will not move up economically throughout their lifetime. Therefore education affects opportunities.
This quote touches on theme of education affecting opportunities. Since Tony has not really been in school regularly since 8th grade and has been more committed in the 'drug game', his options further in life regarding a profession are limited. This develops the theme because it gives an example of someone limiting their choices. If one does not go on to further educate themselves, getting a a steady, well paid job will be tough. Without a good job financial situations can be hard and on will not move up economically throughout their lifetime. Therefore education affects opportunities.
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