The story, "Flowers for Algernon", by Daniel Keyes, articulates a vacuous man's journey as he undergoes an operation which will lead him to being a genius. Charlie Gordon was born mentally challenged, but precedes an honest, kind, and simple mien. Throughout his journey, Charlie saw the world in a different view as his intelligence increases, but it had drew a wedge between him and the world. As a man who no longer owns the enjoyment of life, Charlie turned into a somber loner. Daniel Keyes used this story to convey that people are each created beautifully and uniquely; intrusions will only take away the arcane happiness inside life's marrow.
The choice of using Charlie Gordon in Daniel Keyes’ book, Flowers for Algernon, for an intelligence altering surgery was unethical and biased. The first reason that Charlie should not have been chosen for the surgery is that it left him and his life in worse condition than when before the surgery. “ I dont want Miss Kinnian to feel sorry for me. Evry body feels sorry at the factery and I dont want that eather
The setting of “Flowers for Algernon” takes place in New York during the 1960s where people with mental disabilities were treated unfairly. Even though Charlie and Max persevered through similar situations, Charlie had a different personality. Unlike Max, Charlie was innocent, extroverted, and naive. We know this because Keyes presented in the book, “Everybody laffed and we had a good time and they gave me lots of drinks and Joe said Charlie is a card when he is potted”(Keyes 40). With Charlie being outspoken, he was able express in a positive manner what he was feeling and believed.
But when Charlie got the surgery, he realized when his intelligence was wearing off, he got super depressed but he powered through the depression. One quote from the book that indicates depression is “please... please let me not forget how to read and write.” (keyes 25). Even though he is forgetting how to read and write and he is getting depressed, he powers through the depression. On the last page he says “im taking a cuple of books along and even if i cant reed them ill practise hard and maybe i wont forget every thing i learned.
Charlie liked the operation at first but then it started going downhill, he he couldn’t spell as easy, he didn’t recognize things like he did and forgot some things that smart Charlie wouldn’t. “I did a dumb thing today I forgot I wasnt in Miss Kinnians class at the adult center any more like I use to be.” (Keyes, 85) the Charlie before the operation would of never forgot about something important like class, he wanted to get smart so he could pass the raw shok test so he tried. While the operation was still working, Charlie was probably one of the smartest people, he realized people were actually making fun of him before when he thought they were just being a friend!
The narrative arc in the short story “ Flowers For Algernon” and the film “Charly,” share many similarities and differences. The short story is told from Charlie’s perspective whereas the film is told from an omniscient point of view. The different perspectives give the readers a sense of emotional attachment to the characters. In the text, Charlie’s narration develops a critical mood. On the contrary, the narration of the film creates a more emotional point of view and connects with the audience at a more profound level.
The author uses this device to show the character’s realization of how American society values intelligence and education. As Charlie’s intelligence grows, he is able to understand and connect with his peers, as shown when he says, “I am beginning to understand Algernon’s behavior, and it’s beginning to make sense to me” (Keyes, 23). This quote highlights how knowledge can foster empathy and understanding, which is
They only cared about what they would get from the experiment, It didn’t matter what happened to Charlie. Charlie Gordon's doctors also didn’t think of what would happen to his after the surgery, Charlie ended up losing his job because people found it wrong for Charlie to end up learning all this information so quickly. He also
However, after the surgery, Charlie finds intelligence was a nice treat but was far from an importance in life and only took him away from what truly mattered. One could believe Charlie was wrong to undergo the surgery because of the side effects that came with the surgery such as physical and emotional instability, and amnesia, the depresion it came with, and how he lost all of his friends and loved ones with his extreme intelligence. First off, one reason Charlie should not have gotten the surgery is the depression and suicidal thoughts it came with for
Like everybody around here’s been saying, Charlie, it’s not right.” Charlie’s response to that was, “But how can you say that, Fanny? What’s wrong with a man becoming intelligent and wanting to acquire knowledge and understanding of the world around him?”Charlie was disappointed in Fanny when she said that it wasn’t very possible for Charlie to become smart that quickly. This is another very important event that happens in this story because Charlie tries to change himself to fit in and then realizes that’s not what matters. What matters is that he’s happy and it doesn’t matter what other people
“Flowers for Algernon” Persuasive essay “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes is a science fiction story about a mentally impaired man who was given the chance to fix himself. Charlie Gordon, the mentally impaired man, should not have had the surgery done to him. The opportunist doctors did not care about Charlie, and only used him for their personal gain.
Josef Mengele was a Nazi SS doctor notorious for his gruesome experiments conducted on Jewish and Roma inmates, including those involving twins in Auschwitz-Birkenau, Poland. Before WW2, Josef Mengele was an assistant to a well-known researcher, Dr. Otmar von Verschuer, who studied twins. When the war started, Mengele relocated to Auschwitz where he had access to an unlimited supply of twins and the authority to maim and kill subjects without consequence (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum). Initially, Josef Mengele was not necessarily feared by children he experimented on. He was often known to appear with pockets full of candy and chocolates, to pat them on the head, to talk with them, and sometimes even to play with the kids(Rosenberg).
The novel Flowers for Algernon written by Daniel Keyes effectively explores the complex human experiences of disability and the impact that it has on individuals and society through its three major themes; Self-realisation , Alienation and loneliness and treatment of the mentally disabled by society. Through these themes this response will highlight the difficulties experienced by people with disabilities and the people in their lives. The first theme in Flowers for Algernon is self-realisation. Charlie’s new found knowledge has allowed him to have the ability to voice his needs and wants for understanding, acceptance, and love.
For example, on page 299, “I felt sick inside as I looked at his dull, vacuous smile, the wide bright eyes of a child, uncertain but easy to please. And I had been laughing at him too. Suddenly, I was furious at myself and all those who were laughing at him.” Here, Charlie was realizing that people were mean and rude to people who weren’t like them. That people looked down to people who were different than them or not as smart.
He also became bitter which made him all alone without friends or family at the end of the story. The surgery was a disturbing encounter physical and intellectually and just caused Charlie to feel isolated. If the knowledge was permanent the surgery could have