Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds Book Analysis Essay Example

In the novel, “Long Way Down.” by Jason Reynolds, many people have different opinions about who was the one that impacted Will’s decision the most all the way to the last floor which was the lobby where he got off. They might say that Buck, Dani, Shawn, and Uncle Mark were the ones they thought left the most influence on Will’s choice to avenge Shawn’s death and follow the rules. But in my opinion, Pop’s is the one that has the largest impact on Will’s decision because instead of showing him what would happen like Uncle Mark, Pops exemplifies how he was unprepared and unsure to kill Uncle Mark’s killer. A quote that would sustain my argument would be “I was sure that was Mark’s killer.” This quote illustrates how uncertain and quick Will’s dad was to avenge his brother’s death just like Will who was ready to avenge Shawn’s death without double-checking for any mistakes that may occur. After Pops killed the person who he thought was Mark’s killer, Pop’s felt regretful.  Will was following his exact path with him not even being one hundred percent sure that Riggs was the one that killed Shawn or even double-checking in the beginning whether the gun had bullets or not.

My second reason that would support my argument about Will’s choice to avenge Shawn is when Will confesses everything about Shawn’s death, instead of immediately berating him Pops asks, Will, what he thinks he should do. Follow the rules? Or don’t? His own opinion, not what he’s been brought up to believe in his neighborhood. A quote that would sustain my argument would be “What do you think you should do?” This quote indicates when Pops asks Will what he thought he should do, his choice on whether to follow the rules and avenge Shawn, and this was before Pops started to explain the truth which was no doubt the one that affected Will’s decision to avenge Shawn. This quote really influenced Will’s decision by making him ask himself a question. Will already learned from Uncle Mark that he wasn’t ready to kill someone, and he learned from Dani about the consequences, and he learned from Buck that not everyone is perfect. But was he truly sure that Riggs killed Shawn and was he ready to kill Riggs not knowing whether he was innocent or not?

Some people may think that Uncle Mark was the most impactful character in the novel. They could argue that Uncle Mark showed Will just like a scene in a movie what it would be like when he stepped off the elevator and was ready to kill Riggs to avenge Shawn. This opened Will’s eyes much more as he learned he wasn’t ready to actually kill someone with a real gun. They are wrong because even though Uncle Mark was able to mentally yet physically show Will how things would have played out if he had chosen to avenge Shawn and kill Riggs, Will was still strong on the idea of avenging Shawn and killing Riggs even with Dani questioning that what if he shoots the wrong guy and someone innocent dies and even when he felt like he wasn’t ready. I agree that Uncle Mark left some impact after he showed Will what it would play out when he got to Riggs and I do agree that it did weaken Will’s decision but meeting Pops did leave a bigger imprint on his choice. Not only did Pops ask him what he felt like doing, following the rules or not he also confessed that he made the same mistake Will was currently making. And he even pointed a gun at Will making him feel how it would feel to have a gun pointed at you, minutes away from death and that no doubt scared Will who barely knew how to use a gun properly or even check if it had bullets.