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Graffiti symbolizes the young Wes Moore’s desire to leave his mark on the world. Graffiti tagging is a common youth activity in Wes’s Bronx neighborhood, and he eagerly takes it up as a kid. He comes up with his own pseudonym, “Kid Kupid,” which he spray-paints on walls. When his friend Shea gets Wes to tag a wall with him, Wes looks at his work: “I had added my mark to Laconia Avenue, a testament to the world that Wes Moore lived—or at least Kid Kupid did. Nobody could ever deny I was there.” Hidden in this act of youth rebellion is Wes’s profound anxiety over not leaving any meaningful trace of his existence in the world, an anxiety fostered by the seeming hopelessness of his circumstances. This anxiety gets an outlet through destructive vandalism, but at military school, one of Wes’s instructors memorably encourages him to leave his mark on the world in other ways. Wes takes this advice to heart, using it as motivation to make his mark on the world by helping others and giving back to his community. In this sense, when Wes stops graffitiing, it marks the onset of his maturity. As a youth he cared more about expressing himself as an individual; but with age and experience, he learns that it’s more important to express one’s agency through giving back to others.
Graffiti Quotes in Discovering Wes Moore
The Discovering Wes Moore quotes below all refer to the symbol of Graffiti. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 4 Quotes
Once I felt the coast was clear, I began to draw, starting with the connected Ks and finishing with a wide circle around them, in my custom style. Seven seconds and done. I had added my mark to Laconia Avenue, a testament to the world that Wes Moore lived—or at least Kid Kupid did. Nobody could ever deny I was there.
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As Wes begins skipping school regularly and spending all his time with his local neighborhood friends, he starts getting into trouble, including graffitiing buildings with his unique tag, “Kid Kupid.” One day, he runs into his friend Shea, who reveals a can of spray paint and offers Wes a chance to tag a building with him. In this passage, Wes’s graffitiing points to his need to leave a “mark” on his world and prove wrong anyone who would ever “deny he was there.” This need bespeaks a deep fear that he will never leave such a mark. His anxiety is Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Und
The kids in my crew loved one another, but how long would we mourn if any one of us disappeared? I’d seen it happen already, kids leaving the hood in one way or another—killed, imprisoned, shipped off to distant relatives down south. The older kids would pour out a little liquor or leave a shrine on a corner under a graffiti mural, or they’d reminisce about the ones who were locked up. But then life went on. The struggle went on. Who really cared? Besides my mother, who would truly miss me if I went to jail?
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Just as Wes and Shea finish up their tagging, a police officer arrives and handcuffs them. Even at this young age, Shea is already a runner for serious drug dealers and thus remains confident in the face of law enforcement. Wes, however, has never had an encounter like this before, and it forces him to reevaluate the friendships that play such a central role in his life. In this passage, Wes’s anxiety over leaving some kind of mark on the world again comes to the fore. But this scene shows Wes starting to question whether the path he is headed Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Mini
Chapter 7 Quotes
Then he said something I will never forget: “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 it matter that you were ever here.”
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During Wes’s awakening to the power and pleasures of reading, he comes across Colin Powell’s autobiography, which leads him to seriously consider a career in the military. As he thinks further about this possibility, Wes reflects on all the military faculty who have impressed him during his time at Valley Forge. Among them is one particularly demanding colonel, who announces his retirement to undergo treatment for advanced-stage cancer and leaves the cadets with the parting words in this passage. The passage connects back to Wes’s anxiety about leaving some kind of mark on the world, which as a delinquent youth Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus po
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Graffiti Symbol Timeline in Discovering Wes Moore
The timeline below shows where the symbol Graffiti appears in Discovering Wes Moore. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
...bag and invites Wes to tag a building with him. Wes is already experienced with tagging; his tag is K.K., standing for “Kid Kupid.” Wes tags the building and feels pride...
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