Society mistreats anyone who is different and most of the
time it happens subconsciously. Mentally disabled people are mistreated daily
just because of their condition. Charlie in “Flowers for Algernon” is the great
example. He was mistreated as a mentally disabled person by his co-workers at
the beginning. Although the goal of the operation is to improve the ability of
mentally challenged people, the reality is that Nemur and Strauss are primarily
using the experiment to build their careers. Charlie and Algernon are treated
as objects for display, instead of distinct living beings. As his intelligence
surpasses even that of Dr. Strauss and Professor Nemur, Charlie himself
develops certain arrogance. When he sees patrons at a diner laughing at a
mentally retarded busboy, he also laughs with them as well; but he soon comes
to his sense and demands that the patrons recognize the boy’s humanity. He
never deliberately mistreats others, but he behaves like that as he becomes
more intelligent. Thus, the essay seems to suggest that it is human nature to
need to feel superior to others. Society in general feels awkward and superior
to the mentally disabled due to lack of contact or knowledge of them.
Sister Outsider is another example of mistreatment in this
society. Lorde addresses abused feminist issues that face her as a woman, a
lesbian, an African American, and a lesbian. She talks about how to make change
and helps the reader truly understand the situation of people who are
underprivileged and discriminated against in our society.
As we have learned in class, society has enough knowledge to
know that these people are different but not enough knowledge about them to
know how to treat them.
Thuy, I really liked your last paragraph where you said that society doesn't have enough knowledge to know how to treat people who are different. I think this relates to the part in Lorde's essay where she says that the suppressed groups are expected to educated the privleged. This is a truly complex and essential problem of society. I think Lorde is right that the privleged groups should not expect education from the groups they once/currently oppressed, but I don't think that any group can gain understanding of another without learning directly from one of the "others".
ReplyDeleteThuy, I agree with your post. Great insight into the theme behind the story. I didn't notice before that Charlie himself even acted poorly towards others unknowingly after he became smart. A good message to take from this story, as you pointed out, is that we need to really get to know someone before we know how to treat them because we don't know what's going on in their life.
ReplyDelete