The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

How many people do you know that is both persistent and honest ? In the short story Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, Charlie Gordon, the main character, is both persistent and honest. In this short story, Charlie Gordon is a 37 year old man that has a very low IQ and goes through a brain surgery that triples your IQ. Throughout the story, you read Charlie Gordon’s progress reports and understand what it’s like to go from a low IQ of 68 to triple that amount. Also, you read through how he's treated

Nature is a powerful force. According the Erik Erikson, the stages of life “is set by nature”, and that there are eight stages of human development (Erikson). The main character in the book “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes, is a 33 year old adult named Charlies. For a long time, Charlie had an IQ of 68 making him an easy target for bullies and manipulators. Finally, the Welberg Foundation reached out to him, and after a lot of research and testing, Dr. Strauss and Professor Nemur performed

One story I read lately that has a very strong theme in my opinion is “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes. In this story 37 year old Charlie Gordon is one of two patients to get a surgery to make him smarter. The other patient is a mouse named Algernon. While transforming into a smarter and better man, Charlie realizes his friends who he thought were his best friends had been laughing at him the entire time. He loses his friends for his intelligence and his only company besides the doctors for

Why does change in Charlie Gordon's life make him act differently? The intelligence Charlie gained made his demeanor change. He became more angry and pushed all his friends away. He then began realizing that people were not as nice as he thought they had been. Finally, he became split pre and post surgery Charlie. Flowers for Algernon has a lot of different themes.These include fear, love, and identity. Although, the theme that really stuck out to me was change. The main character Charlie goes through

Darr 1 Sabrina Darr Mrs.Borba ENG-1D1 Wednesday November 29 Charlie’s Journey There is no greater journey than one must take to discover all of the mysteries that lie within. In the novel Flowers For Algernon, Charlie undergoes an operation that ultimately changes him. In the beginning Charlie is happy, and selfless in his ignorance, but eventually those emotions turn to shame and that is all Charlie is left with in the end. In the novel Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes demonstrates the importance

Flowers For Algernon Essay In Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes, the main character Charlie Gordon under goes in an operation to increase his intelligence as a mentally disabled person. Later on in the story he looses the intelligence he gained and could be on the road to dying. He is better off with the surgery because he gained so much such as, social cues and intelligence. Before the operation Charlie could barely say complete sentences let alone spell, but after the operation he

In Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, one of the most important themes deals with the mistreatment of people with mental disabilities. Keyes suggests that society, for the most part, will mistreat people with mental disabilities just because they are different. People dread the unfamiliar due to not having experienced what the unfamiliar exactly is, and in Charlie’s case they do not understand the perspectives of the people with mental disabilities. Keyes reveals this concept through the eyes

Flowers for Algernon” is a story about man named Charlie Gordan, who is of low intelligence with an I.Q, or intelligence quotient, of only 68. He took a choice to undergo a surgery, with the recommendation from his night school teacher, which would cause his I.Q to triple, and go from 68 to 204. This was an incredible decision, and it was a colossal change in Charlie’s life. Charlie made the right choice by having the operation because he helped further scientific knowledge about the brain, and he

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. I want you to be carefull and do the best you can do. You got yourself a new job with a 5 doller raise.” (pg. 36) While Charlie didn’t tell anyone about the operation, he still shows up to

a lab mouse named Algernon. Charlie goes from disliking the mouse because he outsmarted him to showing he was upset that Algernon had to pass a test to eat his food. Both Algernon and Charlie are in the same boat and are being experimented on for science. Now that Charlie can realize reality his views will drastically change for the mouse Algernon. Before Charlie's operation he was taking multiple tests over a period of time. In a few tests he needs to compete with Algernon and lost every time. “Anyway