Question
Close Read: Analyze the Text
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A
In “Flowers for Algernon,” what is the main reason that Charlie wants to increase his intelligence?
A. He is very competitive and wants to beat Algernon when they are tested.
B. He knows that he is different and wants to be more like other people.
C. He wants to please Miss Kinnian and is afraid he will disappoint her.
D. He is a lonely person, with no close friends or social life.
Part B
Which of the following quotations from “Flowers for Algernon” best supports the answer to Part A?
A. Anyway that test made me feel worser than all the others because they did it over 10 times with difernt amazeds and Algernon won every time. I dint know that mice were so smart.
B. I don't understand why I never noticed how beautiful Miss Kinnian really is. … I think from the beginning I had the feeling that she was an unreachable genius—and very, very old.
C. How strange it is that people of honest feelings and sensibility, who would not take advantage of a man born without arms or legs or eyes—how such people think nothing of abusing a man born with low intelligence.
D. I see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that other people had something I lacked—something denied me. … Even a feeble-minded man wants to be like other men.
Identify the choice that best answers the question.
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A
In “Flowers for Algernon,” what is the main reason that Charlie wants to increase his intelligence?
A. He is very competitive and wants to beat Algernon when they are tested.
B. He knows that he is different and wants to be more like other people.
C. He wants to please Miss Kinnian and is afraid he will disappoint her.
D. He is a lonely person, with no close friends or social life.
Part B
Which of the following quotations from “Flowers for Algernon” best supports the answer to Part A?
A. Anyway that test made me feel worser than all the others because they did it over 10 times with difernt amazeds and Algernon won every time. I dint know that mice were so smart.
B. I don't understand why I never noticed how beautiful Miss Kinnian really is. … I think from the beginning I had the feeling that she was an unreachable genius—and very, very old.
C. How strange it is that people of honest feelings and sensibility, who would not take advantage of a man born without arms or legs or eyes—how such people think nothing of abusing a man born with low intelligence.
D. I see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that other people had something I lacked—something denied me. … Even a feeble-minded man wants to be like other men.
Answers
GPT-4o mini
Part A: The main reason that Charlie wants to increase his intelligence is best answered by option **B. He knows that he is different and wants to be more like other people.** Throughout the story, Charlie expresses a desire to understand and connect with others, which is a significant driving force behind his wish to undergo the experimental procedure.
Part B: The quotation that best supports the answer to Part A is **D. "I see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that other people had something I lacked—something denied me. … Even a feeble-minded man wants to be like other men."** This quote directly illustrates Charlie's awareness of his differences in intelligence and his longing to be on the same level as others, reinforcing the idea that he wants to be more like them.
Part B: The quotation that best supports the answer to Part A is **D. "I see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that other people had something I lacked—something denied me. … Even a feeble-minded man wants to be like other men."** This quote directly illustrates Charlie's awareness of his differences in intelligence and his longing to be on the same level as others, reinforcing the idea that he wants to be more like them.