Flowers For Algernon is an intriguing novel with multiple messages and themes that can be interpreted after reading it. The main protagonist, Charlie Gordon, is the first human who has an operation done to him in order to become more intelligent. Because of this operation, Charlie becomes deeply connected to Algernon. Charlie’s original intentions were to just feel more accepted, but he ends up becoming more distant from his loved ones. He felt that becoming more intelligent would help him make more friends; although as his personality changes, this idea is quickly diminished throughout the story. Charlie does his best to keep up with the idea of “being good enough.” His only worry is becoming a complete failure. He fears that he will not ever become smart and that he will not ever feel more accepted by people. Charlie’s ultimate fear of failure represents how most people view the world today. Flowers For Algernon represents the honest message that humanity is not measured by how much we fit society’s standards, but rather by our kindness, love, and interaction with others. 

“Charlie Gordan experiences then promise, threat, and trauma of failure in Flowers For Algernon” (Ullyat). The entire reason for Charlie wanting the operation to make him more intelligent is so that he will be able to make more friends and feel more “normal.” This shows that his character is more than desperate to fit in with the crowd. Charlie does have friends who are very close to him and genuinely do love him for him, but Charlie still feels as though he needs more friends. In a way, this shows how greedy his character is as well. Almost as though he is not appreciative of who he does have in his life, and that they are not enough for him. Charlie is unable to realize that his current friends love him for who he truly is on the inside. This behavior is very similar to how people act even today. People always have and always will be greedy to be as good as everyone else or better. This shows that  In the article, “A grate contribyushun for science” written by Tony Ullyat, draws in the notions of Charlie Gordon, who experiences first hand the fear and threat of ultimate failure. This article refers to Charlie as the “wounded soldier” because of everything he went through and how much suffering the operation ultimately caused him in his personal life. This article focuses more on Charlie as an actual human being over just some science experiment. It talks about all of the emotions and trauma Charlie went through just in hopes of being like “everyone else.” 

Speaking of wanting to be like “everyone else,” Charlie invested so much hope into finally becoming smart that he lost track of who he really was on the inside. As the novel continues, Charlie starts to lose more and more people in his life who were once very close with him. He lost the relationship he had with Alice and the friendship he had with his coworkers at the bakery. All of this is because Charlie’s personality started to completely change from how it used to be. He started becoming so intelligent to the point where he was unable to have everyday conversations with his friends. Alice started to feel that the two had nothing in common to speak about anymore. The coworkers at the bakery quickly felt intimidated by Charlie; therefore, they started to hate being around him. Charlie’s ego changed for the worst as he started becoming more and more smart. 

I personally have a sister who has a cognitive disability similar to what Charlie has. I decided to conduct an interview with my sister to ask her what it was like growing up a little differently than her peers. She explained to me that there were often times where she felt left out growing up; she felt like she did not fit in at all with the other children. But once she did make true friends, she knew that they really loved her for exactly who she is on the inside. She started to finally not care about what other people thought, and she knew that the most important thing was to stay true to herself. 

“Flowers For Algernon” represents the fears, promises, and struggles that someone with a mental disability goes through. The only wish that Charlie has is to feel “normal” and smart like everyone else around him. He never took a minute to realize that his friends loved him for the real him before the operation to make someone who is completely different. This entire novel has numerous examples showing how everyone expects to fit society’s standards; it shows how most people are willing to do anything to feel as though they “fit in.” People need to realize that they are judged based on the true person they are on the inside rather than the character they try to portray themselves to be.