Charlie Gordon And Flowers For Algernon

Do you ever wonder what it would be like to be trapped inside your own body? Or to have an IQ of 68? These fantasies were realities for Leonard Lowe and Charlie Gordon. Charlie is a 37 year-old man with an IQ of 68 who dreams of being smart. He is picked for an operation to become smart and goes through with it, but who knows if it will work? Leonard Lowe was put into a catatonic state at age 11 because of a disease called encephalitis. He is discovered by Dr. Sayer who puts him on the L-Dopa drug with hopes of bringing him back to life. The journeys of these heroes were very different, but a recurring question is, were they worth it? The question is debatable by many but after reading/watching both of the stories it is decided that Leonard’s …show more content…
More knowledge and experience was gained through Leonard’s journey than Charlie’s. Charlie was still a person and was still living before the operation, unlike Leonard. Charlie was smart for a while, but he was returned to normal not long after. Even though the operation was successful for a period of time, Charlie could still function normally before the operation. Towards the end of the story when Charlie was returned to his original state he says “I dont know why Im dumb agen or what I did wrong maybe its becaus I dint try hard enuff” (Keyes 379). Charlie started to doubt himself when he was becoming illiterate again even though it wasn’t his fault he was returning to his original state. Charlie could have died, but the story didn’t reveal that part. It wasn’t worth Charlie dying to be smart for a couple weeks or months, because you don’t need to be smart to live. When Charlie was smart he was asked to quit his job at the factory he worked at, he wrote “They’ve driven me out of the factory. Now I am more alone than ever…” (366). The operation didn’t make Charlie feel any more accepted than he was before the operation. In fact, Charlie was almost less accepted because people were almost scared of his intelligence. The operation wasn’t worth it because Charlie got smarter, but he lost relationships and experiences in life. Not all that much was gained from Charlie’s failed …show more content…
Even though Leonard’s story was more significant, we can all take something away from the stories. The morals of appreciating what we have, acknowledging everyone’s importance, and living life to its fullest are things we should all consider. The lessons learned from these stories can easily be applied to our own lives. To conclude, both of these stories have significance and life lessons that should be applied to our own lives, whether the journey was worth it or