“Flowers for Algernon” Essay by Matthew Duran
In “Flowers for Algernon,” numerous themes appear throughout Charlie Gordon’s journey. Charlie Gordon, the story’s protagonist, is considered to be used as a test subject for an original experiment that can potentially change the face of science. After many tests, Charlie undergoes an operation, as a result, a slow progression begins in his overall intelligence levels.
In the excerpt “Flowers for Algernon” written by Daniel Keyes, the theme conveyed is that people should modify nature's course for the benefit of science. Daniel Keyes first expresses this by the character’s dialogue, at first when Charlie spoke he was lost, he spoke with no emotion and did not truly nor fully understand the concept of his conversations, but after the surgery he communicated with a passion, he knew what he was saying and could get his point across to other people with full clarity and understanding of the concept. The second thing Keyes asserts is Algernon, without the operation Algernon would just be a normal mouse eating and sleeping, doing what all other pet mice do, but with the surgery, Algernon became important, he was the foundation and test subject for the experiment and there was a more important point in his life, but Algernon did eventually decline and pass away, the experiment had many problems and questions to be solved but Algernon helped answer a few of these concerns. Algernon also served as a friend and representation of
In Flowers for Algernon, throughout Charlie's life, the one main goal he always wanted was to be smart, including his mother. When Charlie performed the surgical procedure, his mind became more understanding which made him learn more information. Later, he learned that intelligence wasn't the only
“I wanted to race algernon some more but Burt said thats enough for one day. They let me hold him for a minit. Hes not so bad,” (Keyes 120). Charlie Gordon has a good heart, but a very low intelligence. In Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, Charlie Gordon is eager for a surgery that will hopefully triple his IQ and make him much more intelligent than the average man. After Charlie gets his operation, he meets a lab animal, a mouse named Algernon, who has had the same operation that Charlie had. Dr. Strauss, the man who started this all, has Charlie and Algernon race to solve mazes that measure Charlie's intellectual growth, which increases proving the operation successful. Daniel Keyes focused on multiple craft moves: simile, foreshadow, and personification to give the reader a way to associate the story with ways that they can relate to.
Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes is a piece of literature that asseverates that perhaps intelligence is a seamless fundamental. Precisely, for 34 old Charlie Gordon who initially wants to attain intelligence because he has been dimwitted throughout his whole entire life. Mr.Gordon is given an opportunity to be chosen for an operation. Fortunately for Mr. Gordon he happens to be the perfect candidate for the operation that will result to be semi-successful. As for Charley a 1968 film that portrays a 34 year old who seeks
Flowers for Algernon is a story with hope, humor, defeat, sadness, and disappointment. Charlie is your average joe with a mental disability. He writes through a series of journal entries about his journey of coming out of the darkness of ignorance and into the bright light of intelligence. At the beginning of his trek, he was working hard to become smarter on his own but was chosen for a experimental surgery that makes people smarter. He underwent the operation and gradually his intelligence surpassed his teachers. Unfortunately the effects were not permanent and Charlie digressed into the person that he once was, knowing he was going to die like his mouse friend Algernon. He moved to New York and It is assumed that
Flowers for Algernon is about a man named Charlie who is mentally slow and not smart. Charlie had an operation to make him smart. What the doctors did was unethical.
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things”, -Henry Miller. When one reads this quote, it may have a different meaning to them than to others. To Charlie Gordon, it practically defines his life journey. In the shorty story “Flowers for Algernon”, Charlie Gordon is a main who obtains an IQ of 68, and desires to be smart. Charlie finally gets his dream one day by partaking in an intelligence enhancing operation. His perspective of life is much different before and after the surgery. Although Charlie seems happy before the surgery, Charlie is able to apprehend reality through a “pair of new eyes”, regarding the operation. Three arguments why Charlie’s emotions are happier following the surgery are: He learns about lies he had in life, Charlie had a positive learning experience, and Charlie discerns his full potential.
“Flower for Algernon” is an outstanding story about a Man named Charlie Gordon with an I.Q. of 68, and a small white mouse named Algernon who can beat Charlie in any maze. The story begins when Charlie's Support teacher, Miss Kinnian, advise Charlie to do an experiment that Dr.Nemur and Dr.Strauss believe that a surgical operation could possibly have Charlie's I.Q. raise up triple the amount it was once before. In the beginning, it was a thank took months for success to happen in the experiment.However, the success was only temporary. Charlie with once with an I.Q. of a genius know back to his original self.
In the book "Flowers for Algernon" a man named Charlie, who's intellectually disabled, wants to become smart. Since that's the only thing he wants, and he'll do anything to do it, two men choose Charlie to have the operation done on, which will "open up the gates" to him learning. Before they did it on a human, they did it on a mouse named Algernon, who became very smart. After Charlie had his operation, he was frustrated because he wasn't smart. The two men, Dr. Strauss and Professor Nemur, had Charlie do many things such as read and write down progress reports. Charlie was learning at a very fast rate. He read
Every day, people go through operations and sometimes experience unpredicted and unwanted outcomes. The story, Flowers for Algernon, is exactly like that. In this story, a 37 year old man, named Charlie Gordon, has a mental disability and participates in an operation/experiment to increase his knowledge. After taking part in the operation, Charlie’s intellect gradually escalates to a genius status. Charlie, the man who had an IQ of 68, was slowly maturing mentally and he started seeing the world with a whole new different perspective. However, near the end of the story, his brain regresses back to where he started from. Charlie shouldn't have taken part in the operation: he started seeing the world in a different perspective, he
In the short story, "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes, Charlie Gordon is a 37 year-old man who has learning disabilities, with an I.Q. of 34. Charlie wants to be smarter. Charlie is tested for an operation that will increase his intelligence artificially. His doctors offer him this operation before they know how it fully affects the lab rat, Algernon, who is being watched for effects after having the same surgery. Charlie Gordon's doctors did not act ethically when they performed the surgery to make him smarter. They should have waited to see the full effects of the surgery on Algernon. They also should have identified that Charlie's I.Q. made him incapable of making a decision if the surgery was safe for him. The doctors did
Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes is not your average book. It is written in a progress report format, and from the point of view of a mentally challenged man named Charlie Gordon. During the book, you follow Charlie's life before, during, and after he has an operation to make him smarter. It contains a lot of themes, but the theme that stuck out the most was both harm and good can come from technology.
Being educated and learning are an essential to a “normal” lifestyle. In the novel Flowers for Algernon, Charlie has learned exceptionally quickly after the operation and impresses everyone with his quick learning skills. “... Charlie I dont know how you done it but it looks like you finally learned something.
The story "Flowers for Algernon", by Daniel Keyes, that we read in English was about a mentally retarded person, named Charlie who had an operation to increase his intelligence, but the operation was a failure and Charlie is slow again. He wants to move now so society won’t ridicule him for being slow again. Daniel Keyes wrote this short story for good reasons. Daniel Keyes wrote "Flowers for Angernon" to show people from an outside look on how we treat mentally challenged people. When you treat people as you always do, you don’t see how mean or how cruel it really may be. It could just be your personality or the way you were brought up. By him writing a story on a mentally challenged person wanting to become smart to
Dilemmas happen everyday. Some dilemmas can be good, and some can be bad. A dilemma is a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives. In the story, Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes wrote a story about a 37 year old man named Charlie who has a disability, he doesn't understand thing that normal people can. He then is encouraged by his teacher to get a surgery done to become smarter. Some people think that the surgery was a good idea,or some think it was a bad idea. In my opinion, I think that Charlie made the wrong decision about the surgery. Some people think that Charlie should of have the operation to make his dream come true In my opinion, I think he shouldn't have had the surgery because, people weren't expecting him to be new, it would not be permanent, and he put his life in danger.
In Daniel Keyes’ compelling novel, Flowers for Algernon, the main character undergoes both important emotional and physical changes. The book has an interesting twist, as it is described in the characters “progress reports”. This book has a science fiction undertone, and takes place in exciting New York City. As the novel begins, the main character, Charlie Jordan is thirty-two years old, but cannot remember anything from his childhood.