I was so surprised by this book. Flowers For Algernon was one of the best books I've read this year and I really wasn't expecting it.
It is the story of Charlie Gordon, a man in his thirties with mental retardation. Charlie is the subject of a psychological research project at a university that is examining the effects of a new surgical procedure on mental retardation. Charlie's estranged sister gives the university permission to perform the procedure on Charlie. The procedure proves to be at least a temporary success and Charlie goes from having mental retardation to having an IQ of 185 in a manner of weeks.
The experiment is initially tried on a white mouse named Algernon. Algernon is tested through a complex maze where he is rewarded by food after reaching the end. Charlie races Algernon with a maze of his own and receives a shock if he goes the wrong way. At the beginning of the book, Algernon beats Charlie to the finish line every time. But Charlie soon soars past Algernon and through the process grows close to the mouse.
The book is written in the form of journal entries kept by Charlie for the experiment. At the beginning of the book, words are misspelled, ideas are vague, and relationships are simple. As the book progresses, so does Charlie's thought process and so do his relationships. Charlie learns what true love is as he falls in love with his teacher, Alice. He learns what physical love is as he comes into contact with his artistic and eccentric neighbor, Fay. And he learns the pains of relational love as he relives memories of his family and friends.
What was most touching to me about this book were these flashbacks and moments of recognition. When Charlie was still mentally retarded, he didn't realize when people were laughing at him or making fun of him. He didn't realize that when his mother was crying it was because she was ashamed to have him as a son. But now that he has had this operation he is able to look back on these situations and realize what was going on. You can imagine the pain of this.
Charlie is initially excited about "becoming smart". He's been teased throughout his life for "being a moron" and has been the subject of people's amusement. What Charlie soon finds is that acceptance is a hard thing to come by. Charlie goes straight from mentally retarded to genius. As a genius, he is seen as arrogant and absurd and is once again estranged by his peers.
I've worked with people with disabilities for the past 6 years and a large number of the people I've worked with are people with mental retardation. I've always enjoyed it and I wouldn't trade those experiences for the world. It's the reason I'm in the helping profession. I've been in public with people so many times when parents allow their children to stare or to laugh or to point without taking the time to educate. In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with a child staring or pointing, because they do look different. BUT I do feel that it is the parent's duty to educate the child about differences so that the child doesn't continue to stare and point like the person with a disability is not human.
I think that Flowers For Algernon is a wonderful book that sheds light on the thought process and experiences of a person with mental retardation and should be required reading for everyone. Why this book was ever banned is beyond me and I think that it is absolutely ridiculous that someone would ban this book. I highly recommend this one to anyone who hasn't read it.
