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Charlie Gordon a retarted 37 year old starts a journal because his doctor, "Dr. Strauss say (he) shud rite down what (he) think (s) and evrey thing that happins to (him) from now on" (371).
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Charlie Gordon a retarded 37 year old has an inkblot test. The test did not go well for charlie, Charlie said, "I dont think I passed the raw shok test" (372).
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Charlie finds out that he is going to be used in an experiment. The experiment is a surgery that could make him smarter. When Charlie finds out that he is going to be used in the experiment, he is ecstatic, as the reader can see in his journal entry for that day, "Their going to use me! Im so excited I can Hardly write.
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Charlie has his operation today, but "You cant eat befor a operashun . . ." (375).
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Charlie Gordon has his operation and it starts a new chapter in his life. He is not a genius after the operation because he hasn't learned anything or even how to think; "When I told him I dont know how to think he siad try"(376).
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Charlie has to take many tests, one of which is racing Algernon to see where he is at after his operation. However, it does not go how Charlie expects. He says, "I hate that mouse. He always beats me"(376).
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Charlie states that Algernon, the mouse, had the same operation as himself. This gives him hope that the operation will end up giving the results to him. Charlie states,"So far Algernon looks like he mite be smart perminent" (377).
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Charlie writes about going out with Joe and Frank to drink, and the reader can tell that Charlie is being made fun of. However, Charlie doesn't realize it, "I cant wait to be smart like my best friends Joe Carp and Frank Reilly"(379).
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Charlie beats Algernon in the race for the first time. This changes his relationship with the mouse: "they let me hold him for a minite. Hes not so bad"(380).
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Charlie realizes that Joe and Frank make fun of him. When he goes out drinking he understands what his so called friends are and have been doing to him. One example of Joe and Frank making fun of Charlie is when he writes in his journal that: "Now I know what it means when they say "'to pull a Charlie Gordon.' I'm Ashamed"(383).
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Charlie is fired from his job with Mr. Donnegan because all of his coworkers were scared of him and all 840 of them signed a patition for his firing besides Fanny. He writes, "This intelligence has driven a wedge between me and all the people once knew and loved. Before, they laughed at me and despiesed me for my ignorence and dullness; now, they hate fo my knowledge and understanding"(389).
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Charlie realizes that his intelligence is not perminent and he is slowly losing his knowledge. He figures out that he will follow the same path as Algernon. This is shown when he says, "I have already begun to notice signs of emotional instability and forgettfulness, the first symptoms of the burnout"(396).
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Algernon dies, and Charlie realizes thet he will die too when he says, "I gues the same thing is or will soon be happening to me"(396).
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Charlie runs away because he has lost everything and he knows he is going to die. However, he still has a caring heart and out of respect for Algernon and himself, he writes in his journal to, ". . . Please if you get a chance put some flowers on Algernons grave in the bak yard . . . "(401).