About the Author
Daniel Keyes was born in Brooklyn, New York, August 9, 1927, and was educated at Brooklyn College, where he received a B.A. degree in 1950. […]
Flowers for Algernon
Setting
The setting of Flowers for Algernon is New York City, with a brief episode in Chicago, in the present or near future. Although the physical […]
Themes and Characters
Relating the story of a mentally impaired man whose intelligence is increased through surgery and then lost, Flowers for Algernon touches on a number of […]
Literary Qualities
Keyes’s remarkable use of first-person (“I”) point of view is perhaps the most important source of Flowers for Algernon’s narrative power. Charlie’s journey from an […]
Social Sensitivity
Written during the height of the civil rights movement in the United States, Flowers for Algernon shows a profound concern with the rights of individuals […]
Topics for Discussion
1. Research Sigmund Freud’s theories of psychology and discuss how Charlie Gordon’s emotional problems (not his low IQ) can be explained in terms of Freudian […]
Ideas for Reports and Papers
1. Research the history of public attitudes towards mental retardation in the United States and discuss the problems Charlie Gordon faces in the novel in […]
Related Titles and Adaptations
The Minds of Billy Milligan is Daniel Keyes’s 1981 nonfiction study of the case of Billy Milligan. When Milligan was arrested and charged with rape […]