1. FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON

2. MEET DANIEL KEYES Born in 1927 in NY Studied psychology in college Interested in the complexities of the human mind Writing shows interest in personality and intelligence

3. FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON First published as a short story (1959) then a novel (1966) Filmed under title Charly in 1968 The short story won the Hugo Award for Science Fiction Achievement, the novel won the Nebula Award, and the movie won a best actor Academy Award for Cliff Robertson.

4. SKIM THROUGH THE TEXT What do you notice about… The layout? The headings? The language? The spelling? The narration?

5. ABOUT THE TEXT The misspellings and punctuation/capitalization errors are intentional. The author has written as if the main character, Charlie, is keeping a diary. Charlie writes phonetically, meaning the way words sound. You can probably easily figure out what the word is; the spelling may just be wrong. If Charlie is telling the story, what point of view is this story then?

6. ADDITIONS TO LITERARY GLOSSARY

7. IRONY A form of expression in which the intended meaning of the words used is the opposite of their literal meaning. Verbal Irony: occurs when a person says one thing and means something else. Ex: Saying Nice job! when someone messes up

8. 2 TYPES OF IRONY WHEN WE ARE READING Situational Irony: when the outcome of a situation is the opposite of what was expected. Dramatic Irony: when you, as a reader, knows something a character does not.

9. COMPARING/CONTRASTING Use this skill throughout your reading of the story. Compare/contrast how the main character, Charlie, changes throughout the story. Watch his actions, his words, and most importantly, his thoughts very closely.

10. QUICK WRITE: Have you ever wished your life would change overnight? What would you wish to change? What would happen if your wish for change really came true?