Flowers for Charlie “Those who use others are stupid but those who are used are even more stupid” (Internet). Charlie Gordon, the main character in Daniel Keyes’ book, Flowers for Algernon, ended up being in worse condition after undergoing a surgical procedure that was supposed to heighten his intelligence. Furthermore, the scientists unfortunately did not use ethics or take enough care in treating Charlie causing his now worse condition to be their own fault. Their greed led them to abuse and take advantage of Charlie, a very gullible and persuadable because of his low intelligence, and their mistakes led Charlie to his death, the ultimate sacrifice.
1. Charlie doesn’t feel like he belongs ever. Either he is not smart enough or too smart. There is never a happy medium with society. When he can tell he obviously is different it makes it harder when everyone points it out.
His intelligence came with a price that made him rethink his entire situation. Charlie was happier with an IQ of 68 because he was oblivious to what was going on around him, people would treat him differently after the surgery, and he struggled with his identity. Charlie was happier when he was oblivious to what was going on around him. Being oblivious and ignorant is not a good thing, but in Charlie's case, not knowing
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.
Charlie had a surgery to artificially increase his intelligence, but his high intelligence has negatively affected his relationship with other people. At the end of the story, Charlie turns back into the old Charlie who has learning disability. Some of the people who know Charlie in the story do not agree with what Charlie did, which is artificially
In the story, charlie says "I guess the same thing is or will soon be happening to me. Charlie is sad and kind of depressed because he did his test and they came out positve. That algerons brain was getting smaller and then he died. charlie is afraid that this might happen to him to. That is why charlie is sad and deppresed and not that happy anymore that he is smart.
His IQ goes down because he wants his old life back and his old friends, no matter what they did to him in the past. Another quote, which demonstrates and reinforces the second argument is the following, “I figured out a new way to set up the mixing machines in the bakery to speed up production.” (p.59). In this quote, Charlie Gordon says that he found a new way to set up the mixing machines in the bakery to speed up production. This happens in the middle of the book when Charlie has an IQ of 185.
His motivation doesn’t change because of his intelligence because that is who Charlie truly is as a person. Charlie is a person who strives to be accepted by the people he is
Charlie’s increased level of intelligence helps him understand how his “friends” treated him. This is shown in the novel when Charlie says, “It's a funny thing I never knew that Joe and Frank and the others liked to have me around all the time to make fun of me. Now I know what it means when they say ‘to pull a Charlie Gordon.’ Charlie notices his friends are actually making fun of him when they say to “pull a Charlie Gordon.” He notices the true meaning of what they are saying and he does not like it.
In addition, Charlie writes in “progris riport 1- martch 5 1965”, ” Miss Kinnian says maybe they can make me smart. I want to be smart,” page 182. This quote reveals that Charlie is motivated and determined because because he has the want to be intelligent as he explains in his first “progris riport.”
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
Once his experiment started and his intelligence began increasing he found out that he was constantly teased and made fun of by his fellow employees. This made Charlie feel very ashamed and embarrassed. He soon realized that the mentally handicapped were teased throughout society, and that it was not specific to him. Many people did not consider mentally handicapped people fully human, but rather as things because of their low intelligences. Charlie was very upset about how society treated mentally handicapped people.
An important event in his life is seen when Frank and Joe invite Charlie to a party after he has become astute. There they make fun of him, but this time Charlie realizes it. This situation reveals to him an unforeseen consequence of becoming more intelligent. The consequence of changing himself was that he did not have friends anymore, and had to have heartbreaking feelings. In particular, Charlie did not realize until he was smart and watched the dishwasher boy laugh with the people who were making fun of him that “people of honest feelings and sensibility would not take advantage of a man born without arms or legs or eyes...
Charlie first experiences people making fun of him, now that he has knowledge to understand that. This event must have hurt him deeply, because the very people he trusted and thought were his friends were actually mocking and making fun of him. He feels ashamed because people are using his name as an excuse for making mistakes, and he didn’t want to be known this way.
Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION Situation Analysis In today’s world, there is enough plastic thrown away each year to circle the world around four times. This is a major global problem that all countries have. Plastic is something we use for a few minutes and throw away. What most people don’t know is these simple plastics actually take centuries to degrade.
