A discussion about the IQ of the central character, Charlie, in the story "Flowers for Algernon" and the importance of appreciating the unfortunate gifts.
2,020 words (approx. 8.1 pages), 1 source, 2001, $ 63.95
Abstract This essay discusses the negative impact that the experimental brain surgery has on the character of Charlie Gordon in "Flowers for Algernon". Charlie has an IQ of 68 and has an operation, which turns him into a genius. This sweet, innocent protagonist is transformed throughout the plot of the novel into an egotistical and intelligent man. His transformation is discussed in a negative sense as well as his quick deterioration, which ultimately lowers his IQ to less than in the beginning. This essay shows common human flaws and shows us many messages about the sanctity of life.
From the Paper "Every person is born with his or her own special characteristics, talents and flaws. Although many people attempt to change various aspects of their own lives they should appreciate who they are and give up the longing for perfection. In the novel "Flowers for Algernon", by Daniel Keyes, the protagonist, Charlie Gordon, has an operation in hopes of raising his IQ. Charlie is born retarded and has an IQ of 68. His mother abuses him, his parents abandon him because he is too much strain on the whole family, and his friends constantly laugh at his expense."
Abstract This paper is an examination of the science and story, "Flowers for Algernon", and the movie adaptation, "Charly". The paper observes that the nature of the science employed in Charly's treatment was immoral, unethical, and resulted in an enormous tragedy, which left Charly worse off than he was before the treatment.
This paper compares the nonlinear time construct presented in the essay, "A New Refutation of Time," by Jorge Luis Borges, and the stories "The Garden of Forking Paths," by Jorge Luis Borges, and "Confession" by Algernon Blackwood.
Abstract This paper compares the different essays dealing with the issue of time. It explains that Borges's essay provides a beautiful backdrop from which to discuss the literary use of a nonlinear time construct. The bending of time in "The Garden of Forking Paths," by Jorge Luis Borges, and "Confession," by Algernon Blackwood, provides an interesting way for the authors to invite the reader into a twisted world of endless possibilities.
From the Paper "Many people think of time as a linear construct: yesterday, today, tomorrow, but what if it was possible to warp that construct? It would be nothingness, like a clock without hands, leaving open a wide range of possibilities: traveling back and forth, seeing past present, and future converge into a single moment, or just being a thing of fiction created by the minds of people. Time, then, would be like a maze; the past, present, and future would come together as one, creating an almost endless array of possibilities for outcomes of events and interactions. This idea of nonlinear time is captured in the essay "A New Refutation of Time," by Jorge Luis Borges and the stories "The Garden of Forking Paths," by Jorge Luis Borges, and "Confession," by Algernon Blackwood."
Tags:algernon, blackwood, borges, constructs, jorge, luis, nonlinear, time
Abstract This paper discusses the novel, first published in 1966, which relates the story of Charlie Gordon through a diary (a collection of "progress reports") written by Charlie, a mentally-challenged man who via experimental brain surgery evolves into a genius. The writer points out that although many scientist and researchers in today's highly technological age are striving for ways to increase the mental capacities of human beings through biological and artificial means, when "Flowers for Algernon" first appeared, such ideas were pure science-fiction. The paper explains that despite Charlie's tragic outcome in the novel, it seems a wise idea to continue to pursue any and all means to increase the mental abilities of human beings, due in part to the need for highly-intelligent men and women who will confront unimagined conditions in the distant future.
From the Paper "At the beginning of the novel, the reader is introduced to Charlie in the first-person narrative, for he writes, in the language of a very simple-minded and obviously uneducated person, that "Dr. Strauss says I should rite down what I think. . . I dont no why but he says its important. . . I hope they use me becaus. . . maybe they can make me smart" ("progris riport 1, pg. 1). From Charlie's viewpoint, it appears that he considers being smart as a necessary trait for success in the world, not to mention that he equates intelligence with being loved and accepted by his peers. In the novel, Charlie's wish to be smart comes true, for Dr. Strauss and his team of scientist perform a brain operation on Charlie based on an experiment done on a mouse named Algernon. And within a few weeks, the operation turns out to be a complete success, for Charlie become more intelligent than the scientists that performed the operation."
Abstract This paper discusses the ethical and social implications of interfering with an individual's physical and mental autonomy, referencing parts of the book, "Flowers for Algernon," written by Daniel Keyes. The paper discusses the story's reflections on people in society and focuses specifically on the character of Charlie Gordon and how he is treated and accepted by society.
From the Paper "Charley first existed in a world in which he was ridiculed by society because he was not like other people. Historically, the nation had consistently attempted to cast aside people when they are not part of the mainstream hierarchy. The mentally retarded, disabled, women, members of cultural or racial groups and those that are impoverished have all experienced this type of disregard in the social order. Society, as a means of control over these societal groups, institutes laws or regulations that force people to conform to rules, which benefit no one other than the controlling few within the country. In most cases the rules that are created by society strip people of their autonomy."
Abstract The science fiction literary classic, "Flowers for Algernon", details the story of a young, mentally handicapped man named Charlie Gordon, who becomes the subject of an intelligence experiment by a group of researchers. The paper highlights one of the most striking aspects of Charlie's mental and social journey; the sense of profound isolation that surrounds him at both poles of his intellectual progression. The paper powerfully portrays the difficulties involved in educating a developmentally delayed child and a gifted child. The paper emphasizes the message of the book; special children must have their individual needs fulfilled, yet must also have a healthy social environment and be part of a normal peer group and family.
From the Paper "The divide between what is considered normal can be as cataclysmic for a gifted child as it is for a developmentally delayed child. Such is the lesson conveyed by Flowers for Algernon. The book details the story of a young, mentally handicapped man named Charlie Gordon, who becomes the subject of an intelligence experiment by a group of researchers. The researchers have enhanced the intelligence of a mouse, the Algernon of the title, so that it is capable of beating Charlie at a series of intelligence tests. Charlie volunteers to be the first human subject of such intellectual enhancement experimentation."
Abstract The paper argues that "bunburying" is used by the character of Algernon, in Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest", to escape the adult responsibility that attends truth-telling. The paper shows how it is a practice that, ironically, reveals the truth about someone's character and preoccupations.
From the Paper "When read in its totality, it appears as though being a "Bunburyist" is to be someone who engages in dissembling and misdirection in an attempt to evade unwanted social obligations - or obligations of any sort. In effect, the causes of Algernon's "bunburying" appears rooted in a desire to escape the responsibilities that attend being an adult and a member of the British social elite during the final decades of the nineteenth century."
Abstract This paper examines how social class is the primary subject in both "Pygmalion" by George Bernard Shaw and "The Importance of Being Earnest" by Oscar Wilde. It looks at how both plays draw a vivid picture of the differences between the economic classes and how both illustrate the artificiality of these classes. It also discusses how in neither story does the position in the class structure indicate the worth of a person, or change his essential qualities, whether good or bad.
From the Paper "One startling difference in the two works is their respective treatment of marriage. In Pygmalion marriage is barely mentioned. There is no question of a romantic interest in the confirmed bachelor Higgins, despite he eventual fondness for his pupil. She even goes so far as to tell him that she wouldn't marry him if he asked her. In the play's lengthy postscript the author says that Eliza, who realizes that a union between herself and Higgins would never be successful, eventually marries the lovesick Freddy. Marriage is a central preoccupation of Wilde's play, possibly because of his own homosexuality. "
Abstract This paper examines the theme of double lives in the play "The Importance of Being Earnest" by Oscar Wilde. The paper looks specifically at the lives of three characters; Algernon Moncrieff, Jack (Ernest) Worthing and Cecily Cardew, all of whom lead double lives.
From the Paper ""The Importance of Being Earnest" by Oscar Wilde explores the depth of dual identity in Victorian society. Classical-Themes: This trait is most apparent in Algernon and Jack in their episodes of Bun burying which Algernon defines as the practice of creating an elaborate deception so that one can misbehave while at the same time appearing to live up to the highest standard of duty and responsibility."
Abstract This paper responds to the idea that the lines of connection between the Victorians and God had broken down so that God himself seemed to have slipped away from where he used to be. The writer uses the beliefs of Oscar Wilde, Algernon Charles Swinburne, and Robert Browning as writers who reflect this idea in some degree and whose works react to the attitudes of their time and so comment on them.
From the Paper "During the Victorian age, writers of various sorts begin to see the period as one in which the lines of connection between the Victorians and God had broken down so that God himself seemed to have slipped away from where he used to be. The view was that He no longer inhered in the world as the force binding all men and things together. The belief was that He could only to be experienced negatively as a terrifying absence, leaving man "wandering between two worlds, one dead, the other powerless to be born." This had the effect of leaving society in a state of disconnection: between man and nature, man and man, and man and God."
Abstract This paper discusses how well the 2002 film directed by Oliver Parker, "The Importance of Being Earnest" dramatizes the original play written by Oscar Wilde. The paper describes the basic plot of the play and then discusses instances where the plot is not able to be played effectively in the film. It discusses the reasons why these acts are less effective in film than in the dialogue of the play and why certain imagery in the film does not work well.
Table of Contents:
Introduction: Synopsis
Act I: Bunbury, Interrogation and Refusal Scenes
Act II: An Interjection Of Ballooning And Flashbacks In The Cicely's Education, Diary Writing, And Fight Scenes With Gwendolyn
Act III: The Introduction of Archery, Unraveling, and Christening
Conclusion--Summing Up
From the Paper "The drive to physicalize the verbal wit of the Wilde play is made further evident in the Act II war of words over Gwendolyn and Cicely's tea party, where the jazzy music on the soundtrack and the clattering cutlery draw the viewer's attention away from what the characters are actually saying that is clearly not in the play. (Fifth difference) Finally, the film's dramatization of Act II includes a ballooning sequence that seems completely at odds with the plot, and serves only to show Algernon in different attire than what Algernon wears in the drawing room that is not in the play. (Sixth difference) While it is helpful to show the characters assume different costumes in different locations, just as they assume different personas, the activity is so strange to the eye; it is hard to focus on exactly what is occurring on the level of dialogue during the sequence."
Abstract The paper examines "Hamlet" and "The Importance of Being Earnest" and explains that both of these plays analyze the moral state of the 'modern' society. The paper notes that these plays are at two very different moments in time, the Renaissance and the end of the Victorian Age, but they both show the moral decline of society. The paper discusses how the plays reach a similar conclusion about humanity: the trivial side of human nature usually prevails over the spiritual, ethical one.
From the Paper "In Shakespeare's Hamlet, the state of moral decline of the society at the Court of Denmark is the main focus. Denmark is meant to figure, of course, the larger, universal context of man. The plot is somewhat simple: Hamlet is called upon to revenge (morally) the death of his father. The appearance of the ghost of the murdered king in the first act is already a sign of the moral direction in which the play goes: a dead spirit comes back to claim justice. Thus, Hamlet's own ideas about the world and about man, which are essentially idealist, meet with an obvious obstacle in the material world, where he sees the baseness of character of both his uncle and his mother who are capable of murder, adultery and duplicity. All of Hamlet's famous soliloquies oppose the idealist and the actual, real view of man as an immoral and trivial creature."
