What mental illness does Charlie Gordon have?
Charlie Gordon, 32 years old, demonstrates an IQ of 68 due to untreated phenylketonuria. His uncle has arranged for him to hold a menial job at a bakery so that he will not have to live at the Warren State Home and Training School, a state institution.
What is the message of Flowers for Algernon?
Flowers for Algernon is a book that says to you: ‘I want you to question everything you know’. More importantly, it seeks out the unflinchingly honest message that our humanity is not measured by how smart we are, but rather by our kindness, love and interaction with others.
How does Charlie define being smart?
Before the operation, Charlie sees intelligence in a very simple way. At this stage, he equates intelligence with social acceptability. When Charlie gains his high IQ after the operation, he begins to realize that he was mistaken about intelligence drawing him closer to other people.
Are Joe and Frank really Charlie’s friends?
These two are basically the same people, which is to say that they’re basically bad news. They pretend to be Charlie’s friends while they secretly make fun of him behind his back, and they love getting him drunk for entertainment purposes.
What does Algernon symbolize?
Algernon, the lab mouse, is symbolic of the part of Charlie that is viewed as a science experiment, the piece of Charlie that resents the professor for not treating him like a human being. For Charlie, Algernon symbolizes his own identity and struggles. For the reader, Algernon symbolizes fate, reality, and death.
Why does Charlie want to put flowers on Algernon’s grave?
Why is he so concerned about a mouse? Charlie wants her to continue to put flowers on his grave because he has a special bond with Algernon. In the beginning of the story, he hated Algernon because he always beat him in races.
What character foreshadows will happen to Charlie?
Which event foreshadows what will happen to Charlie? Algernon becomes uncooperative and disturbed. When Charlie becomes a genius, his most important discovery is…. his theory about how quickly artificially increased intelligence deteriorates.
What does Charlie do when he realizes he will lose his intelligence?
What does Charlie do when he realizes he will lose his intelligence? He’s angry and tries to fight the loss of intelligence. He keeps all of his books and tries to read them. He locks everyone out of his apartment.
Why does Algernon die?
Algernon dies after his motor activity slows and he loses coordination. A dissection after death shows that the mouse’s brain had lost weight. At the end of the short story version of “Flowers for Algernon,” Charlie is showing all the signs of decline that Algernon the mouse did.
What does Flowers for Algernon teach us?
Friends will never be forgotten is a lesson that is taught in the story, “Flowers for Algernon”. The meaning of this lesson is no matter what happens in life, good, bad, happy, or sad friends will always be in the mind. No matter how many years pass friends are always remembered.
Why does Charlie get headaches?
Charlie gets headaches when he thinks. Miss Kinnian visits him and tells him that he has to be patient—he’ll be smart soon. Charlie’s headaches are a sign of his brain’s growth, but they’re also a subtle reminder that intelligence is no guarantee of happiness: it’s painful—literally in this case—to get smarter.
What is the main conflict of Flowers for Algernon?
In “Flowers for Algernon” the essential struggle occurs between Charlie’s desire to be intelligent and a natural order or fate that has decided he must be mentally handicapped. From the start of the story, Charlie is struggling to better himself.
What is the climax in Flowers for Algernon?
Climax Charlie asserts his independence by running away from the scientists who are observing him; Alice tells Charlie that his work at the laboratory is more important than his relationship with Fay; Charlie realizes in this moment that he can no longer run from his fate or the seriousness of his emotional journey.
How does Charlie feel about Miss Kinnian?
Miss Kinnian is impressed with how hard Charlie works, which is what endears him to her. Unlike the other characters, Miss Kinnian has genuine concern for Charlie and wants him to succeed. Charlie senses this and loves Miss Kinnian for it.