Mr Skloot Analysis

4. During the whole story Ms. Skloot continuously presents situations in which the lacks family is interacting with some individuals from the world of medicine. In these instances the author’s tone of writing sometimes makes it feel as though she is unconsciously or cunningly siding with the family. Especially in the third section of the book immortality where an assistant to the president of Hopkins named Ross Jones replied to a Sociologist by the name of Barbra Wyche who had written the letter to William Brody who was president in the letter she discussed whether the decision to take the cells and what they did for science was right. In Jones’s reply he stated that he was “uncertain what role Hopkins might play I’m any plan to celebrate

Henrietta and her family encountered multiple difficulties: from finding a place to live to seeking jobs to support themselves. But the worst problem that they always had to deal with on a consistent basis surrounded family relationships. One of the biggest obstacles Henrietta and her family had to face head on was dealing with their daughter Elsie who had a sort of developmental disability. Especially having to watch her grow up and not be able to get the help she desperately needed but was unavailable because the family could not support her individual needs fully, the only person that could ease her pain was Henrietta which is illustrated by this quote, “…but she just stared back, unflinching, her eyes haunted with fear and sadness that only softened when Henrietta rocked her back and forth” (Skloot 44). Even with having to deal with many other issues almost daily, nothing ever deterred the Lacks family from their faith in a divine spirit. As shown by this quote, “Henrietta made Day drive her and Elsie to revival meetings so preachers in tents could lay hands on Elsie to heal her…” (Skloot 44). This was the family’s strongest attributes. Nothing could ever sway them from being firm in the spiritual foundation and it is show everywhere within the book as the author pointed out, when the family went to Hopkins hospital they would always rub the toe of Jesus’s big toe for good luck. Moving on to Henrietta’s life and how she progressed from barely knowing something was

Elie Wiesel’s quote in the beginning of the book was basically a short summary for the book’s entire purpose. Especially in light to recognizing how the media and the scientific community viewed Henrietta and her family as abstractions in the world. This is seen especially clear in chapter 7, where George Gey the scientist who had taken Henrietta’s cell without full consent, is featured in the WAAM television in Baltimore for a special segment “…devoted to his work”(Skoot 57). Nowhere in the sentence let alone in the paragraph is there any kind of glimpse towards recognition that Henrietta deserves. That’s an incredibly bold decision, given the fact that the only way you were able to accomplish the chance to give people a hope for a cure to cancer was because someone gave you the key with no explicit consent. Even given the fact that it was done in the past in a time where medical records and practices didn’t have to be formally take down what they did, but now that we are in an era where documentation is a necessary it should have been at least mentioned to people here in the present. Especially in this instance, it is evident that both neither the media nor the scientific community thought it was important to show people the person who made all of the scientific research and discoveries possible. Not only do the consequences of having this perspective ruin both their credibility and reliability but it also ruins their reputation. People no longer regard or remember