“Flowers for Algernon” Essay
Intelligence is critical for living day to day and is required in all aspects of life. In this fictional short story, “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes. Charlie Gordon is a mentally challenged individual who can’t read and write well. He is given the opportunity to become a genius via operation; he takes the opportunity to become three times smarter than before and because of this he becomes lonely. He lives a while as a genius then eventually goes back to his old self. It is better to have great intellect and to be alone than to be happy but dumb. To begin, Charlie is better off with increased intelligence than his natural intelligence. With increased intelligence, Charlie’s first advantage is that he
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An example can be seen when Charlie decides to go on a dinner date with Miss Kinnian. In the text it states, “I never noticed how beautiful Miss Kinnian really is. She has brown eyes and feathery brown hair that comes to the top of her neck … every time I see her she grows younger and more lovely” (Keyes 327). In this example Charlie was describing how he loves Miss Kinnian and what he thinks is so amazing about her. Before this meeting he couldn't appreciate how lovely Miss Kinian looks. Charlie only saw her as a teacher that was helping him to read and write. This proves Charlie is better off with an increased IQ because he can understand more complex emotions such as love. Another positive aspect of his increased intelligence is increased skills and abilities. An example of this can be seen when Charlie is talking to Miss Kinnian. In the text it states,“‘It’s true, Charlie. You’re already a better reader than I am. You can read a whole page at a glance while I can take in only a few