How Is Charlie Gordon Successful In Flowers For Algernon

Have you ever questioned what intelligent was? Many people wish they could be more intelligent. If you could change your intelligence, would you? In the short story “Flowers For Algernon” by Daniel Keyes, the main character, Charlie Gordon, was given the opportunity to undergo an operation that increases his low IQ for a short period of time. Charlie made the decision to go through with the operation in order to experience a more intellectual life; Charlie had always wanted to be smarter, and this was his chance to live out his dream. Charlie’s life and struggles throughout “Flowers for Algernon” can be equated to the plot of “The Allegory of the Cave” by Plato. As we follow the escapee prisoner in “The Allegory of the Cave” we realize that

the escapee discovers a whole new reality and is forever changed by this, Charlie’s experience is mirrors “The Allegory of the Cave” as he discovers his own new reality in “Flowers for Algernon.” In the end, Charlie’s decision to have the operation was the correct one because it showed him a whole new side of life. Charlie never regretted his decision to have the surgery, as he made an important discovery in science and was able to learn important life lessons.
Charlie was born with a low IQ of 68; he had always wanted and strived to become more intelligent. Charlie was chosen to be able to get an operation to become a genius, and it worked. As described in “The Allegory of the Cave,” “From the beginning people like this have never managed...to see anything besides the shadows that are [continually] projected on the wall opposite them by the glow of the fire” (Plato 1). The prisoner’s reality is the shadows they see in front of them because they’ve never seen anything else. Similarly, Charlie once lived in the dark, his darkness was his low IQ. His perception of reality was clouded by ignorance and because of this he never knew anything else other than to be happily oblivious. The prisoners were so close to reality, but they just couldn’t see it. Just like how Charlie’s reality of his low IQ was like living in a protected bubble or a cave. However, eventually Charlie and the doctors, Dr. Strauss and Dr. Neumer, found out that the hypothesis was wrong; this meant that Charlie’s intellect would eventually deteriorate, and it did. By the end of the story some could argue that he is worse off as a result of the surgery then he was before. However, Charlie never regretted having the surgery, and at the end of the story Charlie says in a letter “...dont be sorry for me im glad I got a second chanse to be smart becaus I lerned a lot of things that I never even new were in his world and Im grateful that I saw it all for a littel bit”(Keyes 245). The letter shows that though he may have lost his intelligence he would do it again. In “The Allegory of the Cave” the freed prisoner went back into the cave, just like how Charlie returned to his prison of a low IQ when he regressed. Both got to experience a whole new reality and perspective of the world, and then return to their original conditions. It’s important to live without regrets because regrets can hold you back from experiencing life. If Charlie hadn’t had the surgery then he would have always had the regret of not knowing the other side of life. Charlie would have always wanted to be smart, but never would have actually gotten to experience the beauty of knowledge. Charlie was able to keep these realizations even though he had to return to the prison of his original reality.
Another reason why Charlie’s decision to have the operation was correct is because after the operation he made an important discovery in science.

While being a genius Charlie tried to find an error in the conclusion that he would start to deteriorate. Charlie finds out that he indeed will start to regress because through his studies he learned that the hypothesis was wrong, so in a letter to his doctors Charlie says, “I am grateful for the little bit that I here add to the knowledge of the function of the human mind and of the laws governing the artificial increase of human intelligence” (Keyes 239). This means that though he is sad he will regress Charlie is grateful that he got to contribute to the study of artificial increase of human intelligence at all. In “The Allegory of the Cave” the freed prisoner goes back to share what he’s learned with the other prisoners and bring them out of the darkness and into the light because “...don’t you think he would consider himself lucky because of the transformation that had happened and, by contrast, feel sorry for them?”(Plato 5). Charlie also felt pity for others like him; as the prisoner in the allegory also did. This is just like how Charlie wanted his work to bring other people like him out of the darkness and into the light. Even if this meant that Charlie himself would never return to the light he would still be grateful to pull others out of the darkness. Charlie showed that though this experiment was a failure, it could help scientists with the study of intellect in the future. Charlie helped the doctors discover what went wrong in the surgery, so that future experiments might be more successful. Future doctors could possibly make the operation better because of Charlie’s discovery. Charlie’s persistence and determination throughout this entire process are what really made him a good subject for the experiment. If someone else had been the subject they might not have had the same experience as Charlie, and

therefore quit before the effects of the experiment started showing. Another person might have also not done additional research after they learned that they would start to regress. If Charlie hadn’t participated in the experiment the solution may have remained undiscovered, and only proved through mice.
The last reason why Charlie should’ve gotten the operation is because he learned important lessons along the way, and realized that he was living in a facade before the surgery. Charlie realized that people at his old job were making fun of him and taking advantage of his innocence. When Charlie sees a boy just like him being made fun of for his disability he realizes “...I, like this boy, had foolishly played the clown. And I had almost forgotten”(Keyes 237). Charlie had almost forgotten that he was naive and that he amused others with his naiveness. Realizing this brought him clarity to what his life really was like before the operation. Since this was all Charlie had ever known he was much like the cave dwellers who only knew shadows, until the scientists helped to bring him into the light. In the light, Charlie also became aware of the things he was missing from; romance, love, and friendship. In “The Allegory of the Cave” the freed prisoner still learned that his experience was worth it because he literally got to see a whole new world of light instead of being trapped in the dark. The freed prisoner also pitied the other prisoners and tried to help them. The freed prisoner also realized that “...after he had gone out beyond those previous things, the merely reflections and shadows”(Plato 5). Charlie, on the other hand, learned that though growth is painful it is often worth it, and Charlie pitied himself and others like him, as he hoped to one day help people like him. This is just like the prisoner, as they both pitied those who were in the same position as them. This defining moment in the restaurant was an important one because it’s where he realizes what his life was before the operation. This is exactly like how the prisoner realizes that he only saw merely a shadow of the reality instead of actual reality. It’s better to live with the knowledge of reality because a person shouldn’t be happy just because they don’t know the truth and reality of the situation. A person should know actual reality so that their happiness can be authentic and real instead of a fake facade put up simply because they don’t know anything else. Even when Charlie regressed after the operation he was still more aware of what was going on around him in the world. After the surgery, Charlie was better equipped to handle the outside world and people who will take advantage of him in the future.
In conclusion, Charlie became a better man after the operation that changed his life. One of the reasons why Charlie is better off having the surgery is because he lived without regrets by doing so. At least he won’t be haunted by the possibilities he missed. While Charlie did end up regressing in the end, the doctors were still able to learn from the experiment, as was Charlie. This could allow them to make great strides in the field of increasing artificial intelligence. Charlie learned lessons along the way and realized that not everything is always as it seems. Charlie got to realize what his life was before the operation and at least had that important knowledge. In the end, Charlie’s participation in the experiment brought him to the conclusion that instead of being afraid of the light, go explore it. Therefore, as humans, one of our natural flaws is fear of the unknown, but instead, we should be exploring the different realities in the world because you never really know what could be waiting for you. Everyone is intelligent in their own unique way, but still, people critique themselves based on something as insignificant as the number of their IQ.