E2: Flowers for Algernon

Daniel Keyes: Flowers for Algernon (1959)

• Pre-reading
• What is it like to have a learning disability? (Guess if you don't know)
• Why is it wrong to make fun of someone who does not understand he or she is being made fun of?
• Is it better to know how to figure things out/know how to find information or to have good grades? Explain.
• Progress Reports 1-4
• How does Charlie's work ethic and willingness to learn help him become part of the experiment? What makes Charlie different from other people who are severely handicapped in some way?
• Progress Reports 5-10 (through April 20)
• Are the people at the factory really Charlie's friends? How do you know?
• Do you think hypnopedia (sleep learning) really works? Explain fully.
• What does Miss Kinnian figure out from reading Charlie's Progress Reports? Why do you think she doesn't explain it to Charlie?
• Progress Reports 11 and 12 (through April 30) 
• What events make Charlie start to distrust the people around him?
• Did Burt (the guy who gives the Rorshach Test) give Charlie the same instructions each time? Explain your reasoning.
• Why do the people at the factory really want Charlie gone? How do you know?
• Progress Reports 12 and 13 (through June 30)
• How has the operation made Charlie's life just as lonely/lonelier? Why are other people scared of him (factory workers/the doctors/Miss Kinnian)?
• Why is Charlie so upset with himself after the incident with the dishwasher? What does Charlie remember/learn about himself through this?
• In what ways is Charlie connected to Algernon? What's the foreshadowing?
• After finishing the novella, answer the following questions:
• How does the knowledge he will lose his intelligence affect Charlie? How does the actual loss affect Charlie
• Why does Charlie leave?