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Flowers For Algernon Critical Lens Essay

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Scientific experiments can have little significance. Others can change lives. In Daniel Keyes’ 1966 novel Flowers for Algernon, Charlie Gordon partakes in an experiment designed to increase his intelligence. However, the experiment ends up failing. In Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, published in 1886, Henry Jekyll consumes a potion to change into a different person, and it changes him for the worse. Therefore, both books provide evidence that substantial scientific experiments should not be conducted because they sometimes have negative effects, can affect the lives of others, and can even kill the test subject. In both books, both experiments have negative effects on the test subjects. In Flowers for …show more content…

In Flowers for Algernon, Algernon eventually dies after deteriorating because of the experiment. Also, after research, Charlie realizes that he could die as well after he also began to deteriorate. Charlie also lost his memory of him being highly intelligent. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll kills himself to protect others from the dangers of his experiments. Substantial experiments in both books lead to tragic deaths. If the experiments did not happen, Charlie, Algernon, and Dr. Jekyll would have lived. Therefore, scientists should not conduct experiments this substantial because they can cause …show more content…

Both books provide evidence of negative effects, with Charlie’s social skills taking a big blow and Dr. Jekyll becoming an evil, twisted version of himself. Both books also involve the main character affecting the lives of others in a negative way. In Flowers for Algernon, Charlie loses his relationships with his fellow workers at the bakery. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Hyde affects an entire city with his wrongdoings. Lastly, both books involve deaths of test subjects. Algernon passes, Dr. Jekyll has to kill himself, and Charlie is very close to death by the end as well. Therefore, both books provide examples of how scientific experiments can go wrong, and why they should not be

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