Flowers of Algernon

Flowers of Algernon

In April 30, Fanny Girden said some drastic words to Charlie Gordon. She said: "It was evil when Eve listened to the snake and ate from the tree of knowledge. It was evil when she saw that she was naked. If not for that none of us would ever have to grow old and sick, and die." Symbolically speaking, a bite of that apple took him to a world of pain. He wanted more than anything to undergo surgery to be smart, but he could not make that decision mentally, and as a result he had a deep conflict over whether he had really reached an agreement with the devil. After becoming intelligent, Charlie had battles between his intellect and his emotions, the past prevailed in his present and he isolated from all others.

First, Charlie had battles between his intellect and his emotions. Charlie is initially kind and trusting, but as his intelligence increases he grows cold and arrogant. Now he was too sensitive to mockery and for this he was almost always angry. Charlie realizes he does have to choose between his brain and his heart. An example of this is, “The thought of leaving her behind made me sad. I'm in love with Miss Kinnian”. In Progress Report 12, Charlie decides that his intelligence has effectively erased his love for Miss Kinnian.

Second, the past prevailed in his present. Charlie’s remembers his childhood after his operation illustrates how significantly his past is embedded in his understanding of the present. He constantly remembers how they treated him before and now in his present. An example of this is, "Before, they laughed at me and despised me for my ignorance and dullness; now, they hate me for my knowledge and understanding." Charlie’s past resurfaces at relevant moments in his present.

Third, he isolated from all others. As Charlie grows more intelligent after his operation, he recognizes that the ones he called friends were really cruel to him. The people have treated him not only as an intellectual inferior also as less of a human being. Charlie's number one fear it is how hard to be alone in the real world. An examples of this are, “I think it's a good thing about finding out how everybody laughs at me” and “Now I'm more alone than ever before…”

At first, it was hard for Charlie recognize reality. This process of going forward and then backing down fastly was hard but at the same time significant for Charlie. Finally he was grateful that they gave him a second chance to see things with different eyes. There were great turns in his life that made him mature and raise his self-esteem. In conclusion, Charlie understands that is a human as anyone else, regardless of his level of intelligence. The heart is what matters.

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