Take a story's temperature by studying its tone. Is it hopeful? Cynical? Snarky? Playful?
Angsty, Headstrong
We spend the bulk of "The Man Who Was Almost a Man" inside the head of a teenager, so it should come as no surprise that the story is heavy on the brashness and light on self-awareness.
Even at a young age, Dave is bitter about his place in the world. He gets no respect from his boss, his coworkers, or his parents. For the most part, these disputes center around the idea of manhood—Dave just wishes that everyone would stop talking "to him as though he were a little boy" (1). Of course, his emotional immaturity about the issue doesn't do him any favors.
Similarly, Dave is as headstrong as Juggernaut, which isn't unusual for a kid his age. We can see this in the way he pressures his mom to get him a gun, and we can also see it in the way that he pouts after killing Jenny, even though he knows "he had gotten out of killing the mule [...] easily" (206). This tone might not make Dave very likable, but that's exactly the point: By focusing on the negative aspects of this teen's personality, Wright is showing us why maturity is so important.