How does the author address the theme of second chances in the book, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates?

The concept of second chances shows up several times in the book, although it is not always spelled out. The idea behind it is that everyone gets multiple chances to succeed. However, people who start out life in a more comfortable lifestyle have more chances than others. Moore had more chances to succeed than Wes.

Throughout the book, Wes had opportunities to succeed. In some cases, he made poor decisions. For example, he got in a fight as a child and his first thought was to run home and get a weapon. He was very young then, and he was given another chance. His behavior did not change enough from one chance to another. The last one of real significance was Job Corps. This was a program that provided him with skill, confidence, and structure. The author shows him thriving in this situation. Then, the author shows how few opportunities there were outside of Job Corps to make a living that was as good as selling drugs.

In this case, the author seems to say, chances are not the same as opportunities. Wes might have had another chance with Job Corps, but immediately after that, there were no jobs to be had. There were no opportunities on which that second chance could thrive.

Sometimes, the second chance actually harms more than helps. For example, in the incident where Wes got a knife to fight the boy in a football dispute, he was arrested. Tony’s father bailed him out and no one told his mother. If they had, perhaps she could have tried to get him help he needed. At the very least, she would not have lived in denial as long as she did.