Post 4: Oliver Twist - Joseph Huynh

Overall, the novel Oliver Twist was a great novel. It was an inspiring novel to read. I love the characters Charles Dickens portrayed in the novel. My favorite character had to be Oliver Twist because I grew a connection with him. I felt sorry for him in the first chapter because He lost both parents right when he was born. So he was left in the orphanage where children were to starve and beg for food. I felt sorry for him because he didn’t have a good start in life. It must have been miserable to grow up in the orphanage where all the other kids didn’t like you and the supervisors despised you. I don’t know why this novel was different from all of the other novels I have read. There was a narrator like every other story. But this novel in particular caught my interest and became one of the best novels I had every read next to Sherlock Holmes. I think that the characters played amazing roles throughout the whole book and that the story plot was amazing was what made me fall in love with this book.  

Post 4: Flowers for Algernon - Royce Le

In this last post, I want to emphasize really on the questions I have in this book, and the theme and moral lesson that the author wants readers to take and hold on their minds for the rest of their lives. Now near the ending of the book where Charlie starts to realize that his intelligence is going to be taken away from him, I feel the need to ask the question how does this impact him mentally? As he is retrogressing back into his original illness, I can’t fathom what is going through his Charlie’s mind. To be able to forget a whole language and forget all the skills learned just in a matter of seconds is unbelievable. I can relate this to how I knew Vietnamese all my life and then once I started growing up, I forgot how to do some of the sounds that some words make and then I don’t retain the word, or it does not seem natural to me. A moral lesson to be gathered in this book is to be more accepting and open minded, to be intelligent yet emotionally understanding, and to be aware of what is around us. To be reminded of the gift of knowledge and consciousness that is given to us humans through Flowers for Algernon is touching, because of Charlie’s experiences with emotion and insight for only a limited amount of time, readers see how precious the mind can be when we have the ability to control it. Being and feeling love, being and feeling loved, those are something that all humans and animals experience either consciously, subconsciously, or unconsciously. Charlie wanted to feel the embrace of the one he loved with Alice and Algernon had his female mice friend, but both experienced the emotion and passion in their decline of knowledge and awareness. Nonetheless, in the end, people treated Charlie with more respect and care after they realized that yes, even though he is ill and disabled, he is a human being, he is not an “inanimate object,” but person with feelings and a soul that knows what love and friends are. “Its easy to have frends if you let pepul laff at you. Im going to have lots of frends where I go” (p. 311).

Post 3: Flowers for Algernon - Royce Le

I honestly love this book at this point. The self-discovery through Charlie is amazing and I cannot put it into words. A 32-year old man is starting to get intelligent and achieving his dream of being smart and learning. “So even if I’m getting intelligent and learning a lot of new things, he thinks I’m still a boy about women” (p. 48) I find that quote very amusing because it adds a bit of humor into the book as well! I love how he discovers all these new emotions such as anger, confusion, and shyness. “A look passed between them. I felt the blood rush to my face again. They were laughing at me” (p. 57) I like how Charlie is not only having an epiphany about himself, but also the world around him, taken from observation between a fight from both Strauss and Nemur. “They called each other names ---opportunist, cynic, pessimist---and I found myself frightened. I walked for a long time trying to figure out why I was so frightened. I was seeing them clearly for the first time---not gods or even heroes, but just two men worried about getting something out of their work” (p. 69). As the story progresses, he realizes now that there are moral judgments to be made and moral obligations to be implemented while being a human. I feel sorry for Charlie because he was never faced with this type of situation; even Nemur says that Charlie was only an “inanimate object” before his operation (p. 89). A real theme to the story I see now is confliction between smarts and emotion, human nature, and self-discovery because of all the events that has been put through Charlie in cases where his intellectual growth has been growing steadily to the point where he is almost smarter than those around him but he is not emotionally ready to handle sadness, anger, confusion, love, frustration, and moral obligations is a great point to mention too. Although Charlie is discovering all these new aspects of life such as emotion and moral obligations through observing people, he will not know how to handle it until he goes through the emotions and trials himself. I predict that in these few last stretches of the book, Charlie is going to be at the height of understanding life but his brain will soon deteriorate just like I have heard rumors about in the book but also because of defects known in the science world.

Post 3: Oliver Twist - Joseph Huynh

A major theme that would relate to Oliver Twist would be a light house. Oliver lives on the dark streets of London and there are homeless people, bandits, and thieves everywhere. Charles Dickens chose Oliver to be the light house in this dark society because like Charlie in Flowers for Algernon, Oliver was born with disadvantages as well. Oliver had no parents, no money, and no friends. Oliver was one of the lucky people who found their solution. Oliver’s solution was Mr. Brownlow because he adopted him and literally gave him a future. I feel very happy for Oliver because he now has hope for he found parent and luckily found a promising future. Nancy also symbolized a light house because she wanted Oliver to get out of the band of pickpockets and find a better life then be trapped in Fagin’s evil grasp.  All in all Oliver as well as Nancy and Mr. Brownlow symbolized lighthouses in Charles Dickens’s novel Oliver Twist.

Post 2: Oliver Twist - Joseph Huynh

Charles Dickens had done an outstanding job with his novel Oliver Twist because of the way he portrayed all of the characters. Oliver was the main protagonist in the story and represented hope for the unfortunate people in this world. Fagin represent the scum of this world who uses others for his own selfish motives. Nancy was a part of the band that had a warm heart. All of these characters blended perfectly in the novel. Everyone had a major part in the story and was lovable characters everyone liked. Even the antagonists should be like because they played a prominent role in the story. Charles Dickens had done a great job on making the characters in his novel stand out. I believe that the novel was a great novel because of the character and how everyone blended perfectly into the story.

Post 2: Flowers for Algernon - Royce Le

Going further into the book, I realize that physiological and religious boundaries are coming into play when researching and experimenting on Charlie’s mind. “She says mabey I better prey to god to ask him to forgiv what they done to me” (p. 16). This is part of the reason why I think Hila, the nurse that works for the professor and doctor was not working at the hospital anymore, because she could not keep her religious aspects to herself. I think this is a major role not only in the book but also in real life where religion conflicts with aspects of life such as thoughts of others and science. Further along the book, Charlie reminds myself as a child and reminds me that one golden rule is still true, ignorance is bliss. Before he started going through the operation, he hasn’t realized all the jibes and insults thrown at him, but now he is starting to realize it, and I am very hurt by what his workmates have to say, by workmates, I mean the workers in the bakery that Charlie works at. “He really pulled a Charlie Gordon that time. I don’t know why they say it but they always laff and I laff too” (p. 23). All I wanted to do was jump in the book and teach those fools a lesson. No book has ever made me want to take part in the book and become part of the story, which is why I find this book unique and interesting in a way so that attract readers that no book has ever done before. I hate how Charlie is being oppressed without even knowing it. He remembers when his sister Norma mocked him for saying he wanted to be a painter and when his workers made him dance like a goof at a bar. I cannot stand bullying and discrimination. The difference between the two books I have read so far between Oliver Twist and Flowers for Algernon is that in one, the main character lives in destitute and oppression, but has the ability to change something about it and wants to, but in Flowers for Algernon the main character wants to change out of the horrible situation he is in and his living condition, but he has not the ability to change anything, yet he is being mocked for being born that way. This aggravates me to no end. I see that the author had very much passion when writing Flowers for Algernon for Daniel Keyes has thought of a unique way to do a theme of self-realization and finding oneself in a new and totally unique way!

Post 4: Flowers for Algernon - Joseph Huynh

The major theme of Flowers for Algernon would have to be injustice. They people that lived around Charlie displayed injustice for treating him the way they did. They belittled him, they teased him, his little sister hated him, and his parents were disappointed and displeased of him. My biggest question is what did he do to deserve all that has happened to him? It makes me mad when others mistreat one for something that isn’t his fault. So what he was born retarded, that doesn’t make him any less human does it? It is a person like all of us and that he should be treated with more care and respect then regular people because he needs help, care, and encouragement from everyone. He deserves more because he has a disability and has to accounted for.

Post 3: Flowers of Algernon - Joseph Huynh

Daniel Keyes had done an excellent job writing his novel. I would like to commend him for the way he wrote it—a chain of diary logs. It was a different way to write a book. In fact, it was the first book I read that was written like that. I really was very interesting to read as each journal entry gave me a huge and better understand of Charlie then a narrator describing him and mentioning his actions. I will like to say that the book didn’t really end with a happy ending because Charlie found out the results were only temporary and that he will have to move away because all hope was lost for him and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life away from all of those he knew and loved. They knew him as a retired man, a smart man, and a retarded man again. It is very hard to live a life where you are the one who has such a huge disadvantage in life. I would cry every day if I was Charlie. It makes me sad and sometimes angry that people are born with such unfortunate things happening in their life. I hope the people in this world will kindly cope with all of their problems and enjoy life the best they can. Daniel Keyes had done an excellent job portraying the story of Charlie, the retarded man with ambition through his fabulous novel.

Post 1: Flowers for Algernon - Royce Le

In Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, I take an interest in her writing style. The text is prescribed just as if the main character wrote in the book himself whose name is Charlie age thirty-two. Because of his mental illness he treated with care and is tested upon which I find completely degrading but then again, it would help scientists and the world, so I am having mixed feelings at this point. “It don’t matter he says I shud rite just like I talk and like I rite compushishens in Miss Kinnians class at the beekmin collidge center for retarted adults where I go to lern 3 times a week on my time off” (p. 9) Alice is a teacher who teaches  Charlie reading and writing which led her to recommend him to two prfessors by the names of Dr. Strauss and Professor Nemur who has tested a procedure to increase IQ on animals and now wanting a human subject. “I tolled them I dint spill the ink on them and I coudnt see anything in the ink. They said maybe they will still use me” (p. 3). After seeing how smart Algernon the mice were, I think Charlie was looking forward to being like Algernon, and they formed a bond. I am looking forward to what this book has in store. I feel really deep in touch with this book because of the meaning behind what Charlie is dealing with. “I just want to be smart like other pepul so I can have lots of frends who like me” (p. 13) I felt a deep connection with the main character right then and there and I felt like I could step into his shoes and become him. What it was like to be bullied as a kid, what it was like to feel different, all I really wanted is to have friends and be accepted. This book so far has me excited and driving to nearly tears. I predict that this book is going to foretell a great adventure of enlightenment and then a gradual decline of depression.

Post 1: Oliver Twist - Joseph Huynh

Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist tells the life story of an orphan named Oliver Twist. Oliver’s mother died when he was just born. He was brought into the world parentless and had a rough childhood. He was bullied as a child and grew up in crime and poverty. Oliver was recruited into a band of robbers and was forced to rob and pickpocket. This was the not lifestyle Oliver wanted. He wanted to be brought up as a respectable person with an education. He met a man named Mr. Brownlow when he was framed for pick pocketing him. Mr. Brownlow took Oliver into his care and gave in the life he wanted. It was the life for sure. When the members of the band of pick pockets found out where he is, they were infuriated and kid napped him. They took him back and locked him away. Oliver was given a second chance and was to rob a house. That didn’t work out so well and the owners of the house caught him and eventually took him in. Oliver was a very lucky boy to survive through all of these bad events and was still favored and was given a shot to rebuild his life. In the end Oliver was reunited with Mr. Brownlow and found out the he was Mr. Brownlow’s friend’s son. Mr. Brownlow’s friend died and now Mr. Brownlow adopted Oliver and gave him a chance in life. The book became a well known classic and brought tears to the eyes of many readers. I look this book because it kept me on the edge of my seat and hoping Oliver could ditch those fools. Oliver didn’t do anything wrong to deserve all of this. I angry at times because the way Oliver was treated. All in all Oliver made it and now has a chance in life. I am proud of him.