‘a grate contribyushun for sience’: Belofte, bedreiging, en die trauma van mislukking in Daniel Keyes se Flowers for Algernon
Literator
| Field | Value | |
| Title | ‘a grate contribyushun for sience’: Belofte, bedreiging, en die trauma van mislukking in Daniel Keyes se Flowers for Algernon ‘a grate contribyushun for sience’: Promise, threat, and the trauma of failure in Daniel Keyes’s Flowers for Algernon | |
| Creator | Ullyatt, Tony | |
| Description | Die artikel se vertrekpunt is geskoei op aspekte van Arthur Frank se The wounded storyteller: Body, illness, and ethics-begrip wat belofte, bedreiging en trauma rondom mislukking in Daniel Keyes se Flowers for Algernonondersoek. Die artikel ondersoek twee alternatiewe metafore vir die genesingsreis. Die eerste metafoor is die plato of mediese model, wat begin by ‘n gesonde toestand, wat dan versleg, en die doel is dan om die siek individu te genees. Die tweede metafoor, die parabool, begin by siekte, verbeter uit daardie toestand, maar val terug in die siektetoestand. Hierdie metafoor is verwant aan die omgekeerde U-kurwe. Charlie Gordon, die roman se hoofkarakter, is die eerste menslike pasiënt wat eksperimentele chirurgie ondergaan om sy intellek ten minste te verhoog tot op ‘n vlak na aan normaal. Hierdie eksperiment is reeds suksesvol op muise in ’n laboratorium uitgevoer, veral op een genaamd Algernon. Charlie se vordering in die eksperiment en die nagevolge daarvan word gekarteer deur ’n reeks vorderingsverslae wat hy self skryf. Die taal van die verslae beliggaam sy vordering terwyl dit terselfdertyd ’n rekenskap van Algernon se geval bied. Belofte, bedreiging en die trauma rondom mislukking wat ooreenstem met die opgang, hoogtepunt en agteruitgang van die parabool, verleen ’n drieledige struktuur aan die artikel. Using aspects of Arthur Frank’s The wounded storyteller: Body, illness, and ethics as its basis, this article explores promise, threat and the trauma of failure in Daniel Keyes’s Flowers for Algernon, and in so doing, offers two alternative metaphors for the curative journey. The first is the plateau or medical model which begins in health, declines into illness and subsequently seeks to restore health to the ill individual. The second, parabolic metaphor begins in illness, rises out of that state but, eventually, regresses into ill-health again. This metaphor is akin to the inverted U-curve. As the novel’s protagonist, Charlie Gordon is the first human to undergo experimental surgery to ameliorate his mental retardation by raising his intelligence to a level approximating normality at least. The experiment has been carried out successfully on laboratory mice, including one named Algernon. Charlie’s progress through the experiment and its consequences is charted through a series of progress reports he writes. The language of the reports themselves epitomises his progress whilst providing an account of what transpires in Algernon’s case. Promise, threat and the trauma of failure, characterised by the ascent, apogee and descent of the parabolic metaphor, provide a tripartite structure for the article. | |
| Publisher | AOSIS | |
| Date | 2014-03-31 | |
| Identifier | 10.4102/lit.v35i1.1076 | |
| Source | Literator; Vol 35, No 1 (2014); 10 pages Literator; Vol 35, No 1 (2014); 10 pages 2219-8237 0258-2279 | |
| Language | eng | |
| Relation |
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:
https://literator.org.za/index.php/literator/article/view/1076/1461
https://literator.org.za/index.php/literator/article/view/1076/1463
https://literator.org.za/index.php/literator/article/view/1076/1465
https://literator.org.za/index.php/literator/article/view/1076/1459
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