Evolution in Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keys Essay examples

Charlie said that he wanted to “get smarter” so that he would fit in with all of his friends. Charlie wanted the operation but I think he wanted it for the wrong reasons and he didn't fully understand all the risks that it could have on his life. He didn’t even think about what would happen if something went wrong or if it didn't work, he was only focused on the fact that he was going to be smart. Charlie’s agreement to get the operation done was based off of his hopes and dreams, which was to be smart, and that was all Charlie was thinking

The idea of changing someone's IQ is an interesting thing but Charlie a thirty seven year old man who struggles with learning and wants to be smart will become smart as a doctor gives him this chance by having a brain operation, Charlie should not have had the operation performed on him. “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes is a great sci fi short story that you can learn a lot from. Although I think Charlie should not have had the operation, some might say that he should have had it because he wanted to be smart so it gave him a taste of what being intelligent is all about. The operation done on Charlie had a negative impact on him in the end, poor doctor choses, weak animal testing and bad knowledge of the situation could leave many other

Charlie gets more dependable as a narrator as the story progresses because he learns new words and he understands more things, he is able to remember more so that he can write it down. (Pg. 33)

Society has become a shallow place. If an individual does not fit into societies form of the normal person then they are treated differently. But does society treat those who are different in a negative or positive way? In the novel Flowers for Algernon, the author Daniel Keyes shows an in depth look at the treatment of individuals in today's society. Firstly society tends to discriminate against those whose IQ does not fit into the norms of our society. The physically handicapped in today's world are not considered to be "equal" as those who fit into the normal physical appearance, Keyes portrays this through Charlie's thoughts while in the café. Although animals are not technically humans society treats them in ways which no human would

The author uses communication style as a method of character development, which the author utilized to build Charlie Gordon’s character. Throughout the book, Charlie’s communication changes from when his IQ is merely 68 to when the surgical procedure raises his IQ to 125. Initially, his grammar is full of errors and simple vocabulary but later improved drastically, after the procedure, by use of complex wordings (Allan 31). The communication style is different between the two phases especially through differentiated personalities and speech between two periods. Daniel Keyes also endeavors to capture the character’s history to enable the audience to understand the events that shape Charlie’s personality.

First of all, why Charlie shouldn’t have gotten the surgery is because he started understanding everyone and how they felt. This stressed him out a lot. He felt like he didn't belong with others. “Now I know what it means when they say “to pull a Charlie Gordon.” I'm ashamed.” (209). In this sentence, Charlie recognizes why his friends liked having him around so much. It was so that they could make fun of him and play tricks on him for their own fun. Also Charlie had felt bad about a kid at a restaurant. “I jumped up and shouted, “Shut up! Leave him alone! It's not his fault he can't understand! He can't help what he is! But for

For example, by the end of the book, his IQ lowered, and left him where he started from. In that way, he has not changed. While at the convention, Dr.Nemur was explaining his hypothesis, and Charlie noticed a mistake. And in that moment, he realized his knowledge was going to be short lived. “The professors had made a mistake, and no one else had caught it. I wanted to jump up and tell them, but I couldn’t move. Like Algernon, I found myself behind the mesh of the cage they had built around me. Now there would be a question period, and before I would be allowed to have my dinner, I would be required to perform before this distinguished gathering. No. I had to get out of here.” (Keyes, 162) After this huge climax in the story, Charlie came to the conclusion that he would still write the reports, to show his regression and decrease in his IQ. As time went on, it was getting more and more obvious how difficult it was for Charlie to read and write. By his last report to the University, he forgot everything he had learned while he had the IQ of a genius, he forgot everything about his relations with Alice Kinnian, and he forgot all that he had learned about himself, he only remembered very little. “I don’t know why Im dumb agen or what I did rong. Maybe its because I dint try hard enuf or just some body put the evel eye on me. But if I try and practis very hard maybe Ill get a littel smarter and know what all the words are. I

Charlie was better off after the surgery. After the surgery, he had real friends, loved Miss Kinnian, and beat Algernon. After all what happened after the surgery, at least he knew what it felt like to be

Charlie Gordon was not all that smart but he wanted to be. He couldn't spell or do math. Charlie wanted to get smarter. “Miss Kinnian says Ie maybe they can make me smart.” So he took these brain teasers and was not doing so good. But before he could get smarter he had to race a mouse named Allergon. The mouse beat him in some sorta race. But, eventually the mouse dies after Charlie has the operation and it hurts Charlie. “Their going to use me! 1m so excited I can hardly write.” So he went and got an operation on his brain, and he started to get smarter. He was starting to do better at the test, so you knew he was getting smarter. But, in the end, he lost his best friend, his job, some of his smarts, and even most of his friends. The only friends he had were

After the operation, in only a couple of months, Charlie starts showing signs of new intelligence. His grammar, improved, and he is able to reflect on what his does in the past something he wasn’t able to do before. He had finally gotten something use had always desired. Then, everything and everyone turned on him. In “PROGRESS REPORT 12” April 30th (pg. 60) Charlie writes: “now, they hate me for my knowledge and understanding. What in the name of god do they want of me? They’ve driven me out of the factory. Now I more alone than ever before…” Charlie got what he always wanted, and now he lost everything he had. It was a sacrifice it sounded like he didn’t want to make. I can tell just be the tone of his writing. This shows that we should embrace everything that we have. Charlie didn’t embrace everything, although he appreciated most of the thing he never became happy not being able to just enjoy life as it is.

He wears glasses but only for watching T.V. and movies. Charlie has a great motive because all he wants is to be smart for example, "After the operashun I'm gonna try to be smart. I'm gonna try awful hard. (p.11)". Charlie, being intellectually disabled, doesn't understand things, making him constantly happy. This is because he doesn't think about life. Charlie gets bullied but thinks they're being nice to him when they do things like "He really pulled a Charlie Gordon that time. I don't know why they say it but they always laff and I laff too. (p.23)". After the operation, he had a different outlook on life. He wanted to become smart so that he could talk with his coworkers about intelligent things like politics. Although, the operation made him too smart. His way of thinking was based on facts and intelligence, rather than emotion, feelings and instinct. Charlie was a genius and they weren't. He didn't know how to control his emotion because he never knew he had them, often making him go into depression and be

Understandably, this angers and frustrates Charlie. This is probably impacting him more than he writes about, it's a big deal and such a big realization to just suddenly come to. Charlie doesn't quite understand all the psychological aspects and tests of the operation he went through and not being able to learn about it frustrates him too, like when he had to do the Rorschach test again and got very angry. Charlie's co-workers at the bakery are starting to notice a change in him and Charlie feels tension and a hostility between the group. Charlie remembers more incidents involving his parents, and they are argue about Charlie being “normal” or not.

One reason as to why this is the theme that sticks out the most is because the operation harmed Charlie’s social life. He had a lot of people to call friends, like Joe Carp, Frank Reilly, and Gimpy, but after he had the operation, he realized that they weren’t really his friends. “April 22- People at the bakery are changing. I can feel the hostility.” Charlie had become smarter than the people who worked at the bakery, and they started to push him away, and Charlie started to feel upset and hurt by their actions. He thought that he had lost all of his friends were lost, and that upset him. This is one of the many reasons why technology was a bad thing for Charlie.

One reason why the operation on Charlie was unethical was that he could not fully grasp the concept of the procedure. For example, in Progress Report 1, Charlie wrote that Miss Kinnian, Charlie's teacher, told him about the procedure and he jotted down, "I hope [Dr. Strauss and Dr. Nemur] use me ... I want to be smart[sic]" (Keyes 514). To receive the operation was Charlie's dream because he wanted to enhance his intelligence, however, that was all he knew about the procedure. Since Charlie had a low intelligence, he could not see the pros and cons of the surgery, only what he wanted, which was to become smart, making the operation unethical. Also, in Progress Report 3, Charlie recorded his past on how people would ask him why he wanted to become smart. "I told them becaus all my life I wantid to be smart and not dumb ... I dont care if it herts[sic]" (Keyes 515). Being born with low intelligence made Charlie yearn to get smarter. However, because getting smarter

Throughout the novel Charlie’s personality and intelligence level changes a lot. In the beginning Charlie is happy, has friends, he’s retarded, and can’t remember a lot of things. “I fergot his last name because I dont remebir so good.” (Keyes 2),