The Influence Of Uncle Mark In 'Long Way Down'

In the book Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds I believe that Uncle Mark influenced William Holloman the most. William Hollomanis 15-year-old teenager in an urban neighborhood. Will is sensitive, perceptive, and loves language, but he also desperately wants to grow up and be a man like his dad, Pop; his Uncle Mark; and his big brother, Shawn. Shawn was a huge role model to Will and on one fatal day, it happened! BANG! BANG! There was one person dead on the ground… Shawn. So, Shawn had one thing to do: he had to follow the “Rules”. There are 3 rules in the neighborhood. 1. No crying 2. No snitching and 3. The most important of them all… Seek revenge. So Will followed the rules. The reasons Uncle Mark influenced Will the most is that he shows that Will can't even say the word shoot and Will learns so much about him.

In the novel on page 176 “Sees Riggs, pulls the gun out and… I got stuck. Couldn’t say anything else. Couldn’t say it. Hoped Uncle Mark would say, cut.” Later on page 178, “FINISH IT!, Uncle Mark demanded.” Then Will says “Okay, Okay,” Then finally “Will pulls out the gun, and… and shoots.” This is one important piece of evidence because Will can't even say the word shoots and now is expected to kill a man which might make him think about his decisions which shows Uncle Marks's influence on Will. Some people might think that Uncle Mark didn't do anything and all he did was tell a story and then the next person came. But even though it was short-lived it was still important in the impact that it resulted in. This all shows why Uncle Mark influenced Will the