Rain Man Justice
Authors and movie producers write novels and make movies for several different reasons. Some write to entertain, some to inform, and others to teach lessons, especially to students. One movie that does a great job teaching students is Rain Man. This movie tells the story of a man who meets his autistic brother, Raymond, after his father dies. Although at first skeptical of his brother, he learns many great qualities about him. Although Raymond’s autism may change his learning and social abilities, it does not change Raymond’s caring and loving personality. This movie calls viewers to action, encouraging them to abandon their stigma against the disabled, promoting equal justice for all and advocating for the integration of the disabled into the community. Raymond and many other fictional characters, as well as real life individuals expose students to minorities such as the disabled, opening students minds and promoting students to be future agents of social justice. Social justice is a prominent theme in
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the novel Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. An important character, Alice Kinnian, teaches adults with mental disabilities and attempts to integrate these disabled adults into the “normal” society, making her an agent of social justice. Through her teaching, she forms a special connection with Charlie Gordon, one of her best students. She is always there to help Charlie both before and after his surgery. Alice ignores Charlie’s differences and treats him just like any other man in society and does everything that she can to help Charlie become a more intellectual person. One sign of Alice’s acceptance of Charlie’s differences is when“Miss Kinnian teeches [Charlie] how to spel better. She says look at a werd and close your eyes and say it over and over again,” (Keyes 33). Although spelling might seem like something that does not matter, it is Charlie’s first step to finding a place in everyday society. Alice believes that if he can spell words like the rest of the community, that he will gain the confidence to attempt to integrate into society. When Charlie begins to show a love interest in her, instead of turning him down right away, Alice is mindful of his feelings. She tells Charlie that “‘these feelings are new to you...I don’t think this [relationship] is good for you,’” (80). She knows that he is in a fragile emotional state after the surgery and is conscious of his sensitivity. The way that Alice finesses her connection with Charlie and the way that she watches out for Charlie’s feelings makes her an agent of social justice. Keyes most likely wrote this book in order to open up young readers’ minds to new ideas, such as the treatment of the disabled. He wants to “change our mental structures-creating new schemas that readers will continue to use,” (Heinz) and he does this by emphasizing Alice’s good character. Keyes wants his young audience to become more like Alice and transform into people who care about everyone no matter what they look like or how smart they are.
While Flowers for Algernon focuses on a man with intellectual disabilities, Wonder by Raquel J. Palacio focuses on a boy with physical disabilities and differences. In this novel a boy named Auggie, who has a facial abnormity, goes to school for the first time. Auggie’s classmates make fun of him and he has few friends to turn to during his struggles in school. His friend Jack is an agent of social justice because he stands up for Auggie even as his own friends make fun of him for standing up for the student who is perceived to be an outlier from the rest. Jack’s friends cannot comprehend why he chooses to associate himself with a student that looks different than their classmates and they turn the whole grade against him. He begins receiving notes in his locker such as “you stink big cheese! And Nobody likes you anymore!” (Palacio). Even after the whole grade and all of his friends have turned against him, Jack remains friends with Auggie. He does not get intimidated by his former friends and sticks with Auggie, his true friend. Jack also acts as a true friend to Auggie when he boosts his confidence. After Auggie gets new hearing aides, Jack tells him that “it made [him] look like an FBI agent or something,” (Palacio). The way that Jack boosts Auggie’s confidence is what makes him an agent of social justice. Instead of making fun of him like the rest of the class, Jack complements Auggie, raising his self-esteem. Throughout the novel, the reader can clearly see Auggie’s sense of pride as he know he has a genuine friend in Jack. Similar to Keyes, Palacio writes her book to create change among her young audience. She wants to encourage students to “break down those barriers,” (Glasgow) such as the stigma against certain races, ethnicities, religions, and people with disabilities. Along with breaking down barriers, Palacio encourages students who read this novel to learn from Jack’s actions and “become productive members of society,” (Kaplan). This novel correctly portrays social justice and encourages students to become agents of social justice through the actions of the main characters such as Jack and Auggie.
Fictional characters such as Charlie and Auggie mirror many people in real life, and one famous person that they mirror is Winston Churchill.
Churchill, like these fictitious characters, had a disability and was able to bounce back due to agents who promoted social justice. To many people, Churchill is simply one of the world’s greatest leaders during World War II, but what many do not know about him is that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He experienced “depression, suicidal intention, mania, and a decreased need for sleep,” (Ye) before and during his term as Prime Minister of England. Even though he was ill, he was never counted out from society and went on to be a great leader. Churchill bounced back from his disorder and is clearly a man who benefited from social justice. The way that social justice is translated from fiction to real life proves that these authors have accomplished their goal in turning students into agents of social
justice.
the novel Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. An important character, Alice Kinnian, teaches adults with mental disabilities and attempts to integrate these disabled adults into the “normal” society, making her an agent of social justice. Through her teaching, she forms a special connection with Charlie Gordon, one of her best students. She is always there to help Charlie both before and after his surgery. Alice ignores Charlie’s differences and treats him just like any other man in society and does everything that she can to help Charlie become a more intellectual person. One sign of Alice’s acceptance of Charlie’s differences is when“Miss Kinnian teeches [Charlie] how to spel better. She says look at a werd and close your eyes and say it over and over again,” (Keyes 33). Although spelling might seem like something that does not matter, it is Charlie’s first step to finding a place in everyday society. Alice believes that if he can spell words like the rest of the community, that he will gain the confidence to attempt to integrate into society. When Charlie begins to show a love interest in her, instead of turning him down right away, Alice is mindful of his feelings. She tells Charlie that “‘these feelings are new to you...I don’t think this [relationship] is good for you,’” (80). She knows that he is in a fragile emotional state after the surgery and is conscious of his sensitivity. The way that Alice finesses her connection with Charlie and the way that she watches out for Charlie’s feelings makes her an agent of social justice. Keyes most likely wrote this book in order to open up young readers’ minds to new ideas, such as the treatment of the disabled. He wants to “change our mental structures-creating new schemas that readers will continue to use,” (Heinz) and he does this by emphasizing Alice’s good character. Keyes wants his young audience to become more like Alice and transform into people who care about everyone no matter what they look like or how smart they are.
While Flowers for Algernon focuses on a man with intellectual disabilities, Wonder by Raquel J. Palacio focuses on a boy with physical disabilities and differences. In this novel a boy named Auggie, who has a facial abnormity, goes to school for the first time. Auggie’s classmates make fun of him and he has few friends to turn to during his struggles in school. His friend Jack is an agent of social justice because he stands up for Auggie even as his own friends make fun of him for standing up for the student who is perceived to be an outlier from the rest. Jack’s friends cannot comprehend why he chooses to associate himself with a student that looks different than their classmates and they turn the whole grade against him. He begins receiving notes in his locker such as “you stink big cheese! And Nobody likes you anymore!” (Palacio). Even after the whole grade and all of his friends have turned against him, Jack remains friends with Auggie. He does not get intimidated by his former friends and sticks with Auggie, his true friend. Jack also acts as a true friend to Auggie when he boosts his confidence. After Auggie gets new hearing aides, Jack tells him that “it made [him] look like an FBI agent or something,” (Palacio). The way that Jack boosts Auggie’s confidence is what makes him an agent of social justice. Instead of making fun of him like the rest of the class, Jack complements Auggie, raising his self-esteem. Throughout the novel, the reader can clearly see Auggie’s sense of pride as he know he has a genuine friend in Jack. Similar to Keyes, Palacio writes her book to create change among her young audience. She wants to encourage students to “break down those barriers,” (Glasgow) such as the stigma against certain races, ethnicities, religions, and people with disabilities. Along with breaking down barriers, Palacio encourages students who read this novel to learn from Jack’s actions and “become productive members of society,” (Kaplan). This novel correctly portrays social justice and encourages students to become agents of social justice through the actions of the main characters such as Jack and Auggie.
Fictional characters such as Charlie and Auggie mirror many people in real life, and one famous person that they mirror is Winston Churchill.
Churchill, like these fictitious characters, had a disability and was able to bounce back due to agents who promoted social justice. To many people, Churchill is simply one of the world’s greatest leaders during World War II, but what many do not know about him is that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He experienced “depression, suicidal intention, mania, and a decreased need for sleep,” (Ye) before and during his term as Prime Minister of England. Even though he was ill, he was never counted out from society and went on to be a great leader. Churchill bounced back from his disorder and is clearly a man who benefited from social justice. The way that social justice is translated from fiction to real life proves that these authors have accomplished their goal in turning students into agents of social
justice.