"He’d pleaded with his mom earlier in the week for an upgrade to his wardrobe. Tony, he complained, was wearing all the newest clothes and was now sporting a thick gold rope chain on top of it"
This develops the theme of the appeal of the drug game because it demonstrates how it seems attractive to people in poor socio-economic situations like Wes. The quote shows that by getting involved with the drug game, one can get money to buy nice things. Although there are ways that people can make money, drugs is a way to get a lot of money fast. Therefore, it appeals to kids like Wes Moore who are sick of having beat up, low quality things and want a taste of what it would be like to be wealthier.
"And he understood, faintly, how addictive that feeling could be, and how easy it would be to make some money off selling that feeling to people who needed it. As Wes placed the headset over his freshly cut fade and adjusted it, he remembered this story. The headset now fit perfectly. There was definitely money to be made"
This quote also is able to touch on how becoming involved with drugs can be appealing in situations like that of the character Wes Moore. The quote shows the convenience of the drug game, it demonstrates how easy it is to get involved and how the financial benefits of participating are immediate and attractive. Therefore it seems that if there are all these benefits, it would be stupid not to participate despite there being legal and safety issues. When people do not have what they want and there is an opportunity to get a lot of what someone wants people will take that opportunity and that is how the drug game is for many people in similar situations as Wes.
2. Due to society's view of good schools, succeeding academically was difficult.
"It was a sore spot. In the hood, your school affiliation was essential. Even if you weren’t running with the coolest clique, you still got some percentage of your rep from your school, and the name Riverdale wasn’t going to impress anyone"
This develops a the theme of society's view towards schools because it shows how good schools were regarded. This means that if someone was doing well in a good school they probably were not "running with the coolest clique" and due to how influential society is regarding adolescent decision making; it was hard to do well in school. The social pressures are very prominent in life therefore there is no motivation to succeed academically.
"I was becoming too “rich” for the kids from the neighborhood and too “poor” for the kids at school. I had forgotten how to act naturally, thinking way too much in each situation and getting tangled in the contradictions between my two worlds. My confidence took a hit... I began to let my grades slip"
This quote also exemplifies another way in which the theme of society's view of good schools makes succeeding academically difficult. It shows that with the social pressures, people will due whatever they can to fit in even if it will not benefit them in the future. This is how succeeding academically is challenging if the social pressure do not align with academic success which is a problem all over the world in developing locations.
3. Education affects opportunities in the future
"Later in life I learned that the way many governors projected the numbers of beds they’d need for prison facilities was by examining the reading scores of third graders."
This quote develops the theme because it gives evidence about how education can affect someone's opportunities in life. It implies that third graders with low reading scores will probably end up in prison. This shows that if one does not take advantage of their education, they could end up in prison or with very few options regarding a job or a house due to there lack of academic success.
No comments:
Post a Comment