Perks Of Being A Wallflower Research Paper

Wallflowers can hear what others do not; what else can they do? In his debut novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky, a renowned American author, explores the experience of being an awkward, isolated teenager through a boy named Charlie. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a coming-of-age, epistolary novel that follows Charlie as he navigates the trials and tribulations of adolescence, with its theme centring on finding yourself through a strong community. Initially, Charlie struggles with congruence across many aspects of himself throughout the beginning of the novel but slowly comes to terms with his own identity. As Charlie experiences all that highschool has to offer, he learns to accept himself for who he is; someone who

Ideally, yes. Many wallflowers, like Charlie, are able to thrive in quiet solace, and through this they gain the ability to Charlie, quickly finding himself whisked into a new and welcoming friend group, says during a late-night car ride, “And in that moment, I swear we were infinite” (Chbosky 39). This implies that, regardless of how short he has truly been a part of this new friend group, he already feels a profound sense of connection: that he is a part of something much larger than himself. Moreover, with how fast Charlie is connecting with his new friends, he grows as a person and tries things he would have never dreamed of previously, such as partying and dating. Before meeting his friends, he never would have smoked, yet it can be understood later on that he averages about ten cigarettes a day (Chbosky 119). He also never would have participated in any activity involving drugs, yet there is an instance where he ingests LSD (Chbosky 95). Charlie is also in love with Sam, but manages to start dating one of Sam’s friends instead, when before he was too timid to approach people, much less girls. He represents the idea that finding a supportive community can truly allow someone to blossom and gain confidence in themselves, as before, he is shown as someone on the quieter side. A little green,

Charlie has a close-knit friend group, within which is Sam, someone whom he loves dearly. Sam says, “We accept the love we think we deserve” (Chbosky 24). Our beliefs can truly hinder how we perceive ourselves. Additionally, observing others and understanding that they may feel the same way as we do, but that they are going down a dark path of unacceptance, can lead one to realise that one must learn from the other’s mistakes. Sam is trying to get Charlie to understand that some people may just abhor themselves. She says that they may think so little of themselves that they do not care what happens to them, or what others think of them and that because of this, they accept the ire of others. Charlie recognizes this and does not go down this path, instead choosing to surround himself with people who uplift him. The consequences of not learning from a mistake such as this one include social isolation and a life full of lacklustre relationships and circumstances of misfortune. Moreover, Patrick, Charlie’s friend, says, “I just want you to know that you’re very special… and the only reason I’m telling you is that I don’t know if anyone else ever has” (Chbosky 39). Here, Patrick shows Charlie that he is truly, greatly appreciative of him. Patrick also knows of Charlie’s friend who has ended his life, and it is insinuated that Patrick may think that said friend