William Rumelhart
Mrs. Veitch
Period:2
Date:2/15/18

The Flower Wilted, but Left Behind its Seeds

Imagine a bowl of candy for a hungry stomach, with the sweet juices of the candy oozing in every bite. Charlie Gordon’s surgery is like a dive into a bowl of candy, where every sweet pop is a new friend, another reassurance of “fitting in.”The science fiction short story “Flowers for Algernon,” written by Daniel Keyes, follows the life of a developmentally disabled adult, Charlie Gordon and his experience after receiving an experimental, intelligence enhancing surgery. Unfortunately, Charlie’s intellect crashed as quickly as it rose; in a couple months. Many might …show more content…
In a patch of self-reflection, Charlie epiphanized:“I see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that other people had something I lacked-something denied me. In my mental blindness, I thought that it was somehow connected with the ability to read and write, and I was sure that if I could get those skills I would automatically have intelligence too” (Keyes 20). Prior to the surgery, Charlie thought about intelligence in a very rigid manner; in shades of black and white. Possibly this more mature perspective is thanks to an increase in intellect, but this shifting of gears, in a sense, was an inclusion of the goal, the path and the spectators. His goal of intelligence, was measured in the eyes of the spectators around him. He would gauge his abilities in a period of contrast to those around him. He traveled on the path to normality, originally, with the notion that the ‘ability to read and write’ was a key to the door into the outside world. Instead, Charlie shoots past everyone else, intellectually just to return with what he wanted, just visible on the …show more content…
While growing in intelligence, Charlie catches himself laughing at a mentally retarded kid: “...I can see that unknowingly I joined with them in laughing at myself. That hurts most of all” (Keyes 19). This self-awareness manifests into a recollection of the past and pasting onto a present situation. Charlie tries to distance himself from who he used to be, but it comes for circle in the form of the boy. After this, as he acknowledges he does not realize at the time, he feels such empathy that he feels that every taunt is a punch to his gut as