Henrietta Lacks Chapter "Talking Points" by Jean K

Why did Mrs. K create this Padlet?

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 19:16:21 UTC

Since we are missing out on so many opportunities for class discussion, I wanted to share some resources and ideas that will help your understanding. I also wanted to provide you with some annotation support. Many of these posts hint strongly at areas of importance in the text as well as ways the author uses language.

Things to know when using this padlet.

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 19:18:03 UTC

The columns in this padlet coincide mostly with sections in the Table of Contents.
Underlined text refers to a link. Click on it!
What's included? Annotation hints, helpful background knowledge, explanation of references in the text, and things to think about when reading.

Author's Note

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 19:19:49 UTC

Lots of ethos. Author establishing herself with the reader.
Notice: asyndeton, parallelism

Take a look at the official book trailer!

Epigraph

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 19:21:32 UTC

[Elie Wiesel quote]

Who was Elie Wiesel and what is the Nuremberg Code?

In this famous speech "The Perils of Indifference" by Wiesel, he cautions that indifference reduces others to abstractions.

Prologue

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Establishes the mystery surrounding HL.
Shows empathy for her subject
Ethos
Tons of simile (and a few other devices) when she explains cells. Think about her purpose for this AND definitely consider the effect of all those similes.
Consider the juxtaposition between Skloot and Deborah Lacks.
Final paragraph: examine for the PURPOSE of the book.
Skloot careful to say she has always been curious about the person (Henrietta) and not necessarily the cells (HeLa).
Watch HeLa cells divide!

1. The Exam (1951)

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"bad blood" (14) syphilis
"heavy metals (14) controlled measure of lead, arsenic, and copper
"Sadie always figured Henrietta kept it secret because she was afraid a doctor would take her womb and make her stop having children" (14) Henrietta's fears were not unfounded; history in the Jim Crowe south of black women being sterilized without their knowledge when they came to hospital to give birth and also being told they needed an "appendix" surgery
Johns Hopkins Hospital's history dealing with segregation and the legacy of Henrietta Lacks
Notice "foreign country" simile (16)
Unique description of the tumor (17)
Chapter ends with mystery: "Either her doctors had missed it during her last exams - which seemed impossible - or it had grown at a terrifying rate" (17)

2. Clover (1920-1942)

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You'll notice events consistent with the Jim Crowe era throughout Henrietta's life story, but there are some direct references to separation of the blacks and whites in this chapter.
On Sparrows Point (start at slide 100 in link above) Steel Mills in Baltimore, see in Part I (Life), ch.2: Clover…1920-1942 (pp.25-26), ch.5: “Blackness Be Spreadin All Inside”…1951 ( pp.45-46), ch.9: Turner Station…1999 (p.69), & ch.10: The Other Side of the Tracks…1999 (p.83).
Background to her cousin/husband Day, Crazy Joe, Elsie.
Dramatic end to chapter as the family leaves for Turner Station.

3. Diagnosis and Treatment (1951)

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Skloot provides extensive science history
"since patients were treated for free in the public wards, it was fair to use them as research subjects as a form of payment" (30) - This would be considered unethical and illegal today, but was not uncommon thinking at the time. Many of the medical ethics rights we enjoy are a result of misdeeds from the past that have been exposed.
See the simple consent statement Henrietta signed upon arrival at JH.
History of radium use
Final sentence of chapter is ironic and foreshadows the failure of treatment [The events are true, but think about the way the author tells them. She builds intrigue by ordering details and also by telling what was expected vs what actually happened.]

4. The Birth of HeLa (1951)

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***

Listen > Fascinating interview with Skloot and pre-recorded interview with Mary Kubicek who describes discovering the immortal nature of Henrietta's cells.
Final sentence of chapter (again) foreshadows the global spread of cells.

5. "Blackness Be Spreadin' All Inside" (1951)

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Chapter title from the final line of the chapter - in Henrietta's words.
Consider Henrietta's thoughts about treatment and infertility.
Gonorrhea, a venereal disease Henrietta contracted from her husband who was cheating on her, while getting radiation treatments.

6. "Lady's on the Phone" (1999)

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"I stumbled upon a collection of scientific papers...at Morehouse School of Medicine" (49) - Morehouse college is a private black men's college in Atlanta, GA and alma mater of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Roland Pattillo - one of Gey's only African America students, is STILL a professor at Morehouse.Phone" (1999)
Look at the events Skloot shares with Pattillo when he tests her sincerity about contacting Henrietta's family. LOTS of larger occasion!
Pattillo is a gatekeeper to the family. He acts as protector in keeping opportunists from taking advantage of Henrietta's surviving relatives.
Rebecca talks to Deborah for the first time. How is Deborah characterized?
Chapter ends with Skloot talking to Day (David Lacks) who expresses the family's disgust with reporters...and hangs up on Skloot. Another cliffhanger!

7. The Death and Life of Cell Culture (1951)

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George Gey refers to HeLa cells as "his 'precious babies'" (58) - consider how Gey is characterized
Alexis Carrel's "immortal chicken heart" (58) diminishes the reputation of cell culture
- Eugenicist - "to preserve what he saw as the superior white race" (59)
- Quite a few metaphor connected to the section about Carrel
- See page 60 for Skloot's account of who revered Carrel. Think about DC/IC and why Skloot includes this darker side of cell culture.
Powerful final three sentences of chapter: "Tissue culture was the stuff of racism, creepy science fiction, Nazis, and snake oil. It wasn't something to be celebrated. In fact, no one paid much attention to it at all" (62).

8. "A Miserable Specimen" (1951)

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Story focus returns to Henrietta.
Notice the language used to describe Henrietta's unbelievably rapid decline in this short chapter.
Henrietta's cells, post-treatment, die immediately in culture (65).
Read the final two paragraphs carefully. Do you think George Gey ever visited Henrietta? If not, what do you make of claims Gey made to the contrary? (66)

9. Turner Station (1999)

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Author stood up by Sonny and finds Courtney Speed. Consider how and why Skloot includes the details of her investigation rather than just telling a polished family story.
People in this chapter: Sonny, Courtney Speed, Cofield, Fred
Author reads a 1976 Rolling Stone article about the Lackses
Take a look at the short video in this news article featuring Courtney Speed talking about Turner station in the 1960s vs today.
Keenan Cofield introduced. How does the author build a sense of mystery? How is he characterized? How is the reader made to understand how deceptive he is?
BBC Documentary about Henrietta and HeLa called The Way of All Flesh (75). Watch even a few minutes of it!
Consider how Sonny is characterized and the author's choice to end a chapter with his challenge to go to Clover(76).

10. The Other Side of the Tracks (1999)

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First sentence filled with place names that are NOT made up. Think about how ominous they sound when put together!
2017 Footage inside "home-house" where Henrietta grew up
Author meets Henrietta's cousin "Cootie" - polio left him partially paralyzed
Cootie points out that people made money from those cells, but her family never saw any of it.
See top of page 82: What does Cootie think keeps Henrietta's cells alive?
Final sentence of chapter represents a point-of-view about Henrietta's cancer.

11. "The Devil of Pain Itself" (1951)

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Henrietta, Gladys & Emmett
"She got so much blood that one doctor wrote a note in her record stopping all transfusions 'until her deficit with the blood bank was made up'" (83) - unlikely this would be true for white patients
Some great examples of INDIRECT characterization in this chapter.
Who donates blood and why?
First hints at conditions in Crownsville where Elsie lived (84). Consider conditions at Crownsville and how Elsie behaves AND consider Henrietta's statements about how Elsie is doing.
What do Henrietta's final wishes say about her?
Consider the final sentence of this chapter as it is also the final sentence of the section titled "Life".

12. The Storm (1951)

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Do you notice the subtle detail that connects Henrietta (even in death) to a larger occasion in the nation? (89 - second sentence)
Examine paragraph #2 closely. What is the irony here?
See the paragraph on p. 90 beginning "The official cause of death..." which uses a number of metaphors and similes. What two things are her tumors compared to? What is the implication of those comparisons?
What does Mary (Gey's assistant) react to most when she first sees Henrietta's dead body?
Henrietta's body travels through Lacks Town to home-house and when the casket is opened, what causes Sadie to cry? (92) How does this repeated detail about Henrietta characterize her?
How does the family interpret the storm that develops just as Henrietta is buried?

13. The HeLa Factory (1951-1953)

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Polio was a communicable disease that shut down public places for fear of catching it. Sound familiar. Check out this fantastic article that will help you better understand the importance of a vaccine and how HeLa paved the way!
Prior to using HeLa cells, scientists used monkeys which were expensive to obtain and had to be killed as part of the research. HeLa made many types of research affordable and this contributed to the explosion of advancements in medicine.
"Unit at Tuskegee Helps Polio Fight - Corps of Negro Scientists Has Key Role in Evaluating of Dr. Salk's Vaccine - HeLa Cells are Grown" (97) - What is the irony of the Tuskegee advancements with HeLa at this time? (See the Pre-Reading Medical Ethics Padlet for a reminder of the OTHER thing happening at Tuskegee at that time!)
Simile (again) used to explain the science of freezing cells (98)
What made standardization possible and why was it important? (99)
So many medical advancements and understandings made possible by HeLa are described in this chapter. Be sure you are noting some of the bigger ones.
"Gey was relieved that companies had taken over HeLa distribution so that he didn't have to do it himself, but he didn't like the fact that HeLa was now completely out of his control" (103).
Pomerat, one of Gey's friends and colleagues "suggested that Gey should have finished his own HeLa research before 'releasing [HeLa] to the general public since once released it becomes general scientific property" (104)
See final sentence/paragraph.

14. Helen Lane (1953-1954)

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Once a nearly correct name was published, Gey works to discourage Henrietta's real name from getting out. What are some of the possible reasons Gey tried to keep her name out of the public?
TeLinde suggests there would be trouble if Henrietta's true name was disclosed. What do you think he meant by this? (107)
Why did Henrietta's family never find out that her cells were alive?

15. "Too Young to Remember" (1951-1965)

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Henrietta's children who ranged in age from 1 to 16 at the time of her death were neglected and abused after her death.
This chapter describes the abuse that would forever affect the Lacks children.
Bobbette becomes a positive force in Deborah's life.
Deborah is told she has an older sister named Elsie who was "deaf and dumb" and died in an institution at age 15. What does Deborah think caused Elsie's medical issues? (116)
Deborah becomes obsessed with finding out about the two women in her family: her mother, Henrietta, and her sister, Elsie.

16. "Spending Eternity in the Same Place" (1999)

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Consider how Skloot uses imagery to describe the family cemetery.
Compare and contrast the attitudes of the black and white Lackses on the subject of race.

17. Illegal, Immoral, and Deplorable (1954-1966)

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Note what Skloot teaches the reader about "informed consent" (32).
Consider the behavior of respected researchers such as Chester Southam prior to what became known as informed consent.
Compare what Southam did in the Ohio State Penitentiary (1280129) to the Holmesburg Prison Experiments you studied in the pre-reading activity. Why did some prisoners agree to it?
Southam's reasons for withholding the truth from patients would not be considered unusual in the 1950s (130).
Jewish doctors refused to do what Southam was doing and compared it to what the Nazi's had done. (131)
Learn more about the History of Clinical Research with this Interactive Timeline

18. "Strangest Hybrid" (1960-1966)

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How does Skloot use language to help the reader understand how the science at the time frightened people?

19. "The Most Critical Time on This Earth Is Now" (1966-1973)

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Consider the language used when describing the difficulties the Lacks children had as the got older.
For the Lacks children, few adults are trustworthy advocates for them. In what ways is Bobbette an exception? How does Skloot indirectly characterize her?
How does Deborah ultimately deal with Cheetah's abuse?
Examine the language of Joe Lacks' letter to the judge.
Zakariyya - Pronunciation addressed much later in book (243) Click name.
Consider the significance of where the title of this chapter comes from (147).

20. The HeLa Bomb (1966)

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What is the HeLa Bomb that Stanley Gartler reveals to scientists around the world in 1966?
Tone, diction, metaphor abound: "'He showed up at that meeting with no background or anything else in cell culture and proceeded to drop a turd in the punch bowl'"(154)
Understand this: At the time, scientists thought they were using HeLa and OTHER cell cultures for research. Eighteen OTHER cell cultures had become, over time, contaminated with HeLa.
Scientists wanted to be able to tell which cells were HeLa and which were not, so they developed genetic tests. In order to knwo FOR CERTAIN which were HeLa, they needed the family....the family that did not know Henrietta's cells had been alive for the past 15 years!

21. Night Doctors (2000)

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Sonny directly characterizes his mother and then attributes the usefulness of her cells to her natural kindness. (159)
By referring to Lawrence as "The Big Kahuna", how does the family see him? Why?
What do Lawrence's beliefs about HeLa tell you about his understanding of cell culture?
When asked about his mother, Lawrence says little more than "She was pretty" - revealing that he does not really remember his mother either even though he is revered among his siblings for knowing her the best. The knows more about the cells than about her.
Day finally speaks and explains that he allowed an autopsy because he was told it would help his children one day.
The story shifts from the Lackses to the origins of "night doctors" dating back to slavery. First paragraph on 166 is a succinct explanation of not only how slave owners and the Ku Klux Klan exploited African-American fear of ghosts, but also the origins of a cultural distrust of doctors.
"In 1969, a Hopkins research used blood samples from more tha 7,000 neighborhood children - most of them from poor and black families -- to look for a genetic predisposition to criminal behavior" (167) - the nature of such research reveals racism inherent in the research question. Such research today would not be premitted.
Notice multiple instances of indirect characterization in this chapter that shows the Lacks family distrust doctors/medicine.
Details about Johns Hopkins: one of the few hospitals to treat blacks, but also did experiments that revealed institutional racism at the time.
Irony: Henrietta's cells advanced medicine in a way that improved life for people all over the world - yet her family can't get health insurance.
What upsets the family most about HeLa is not being informed.
Click the miage below for a fantastic (10 minutes) PBS NewsHour report on Baltimore hospitals which discusses black mistrust of hospitals and includes mention of Night Doctors and Henrietta Lacks.

22. "The Fame She So Richly Deserves" (1970-1973)

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Irony: Gey dies of cancer.
Howard Jones realizes from images of Henrietta's cancer that she had a different form of cancer than they thought. While treatment would not have been different, it did explain the rapid growth of the cancer.
Her syphilis could have impacted the growth of cancer cells as well (173).
In December 1971, Henrietta's correct name is officially linked to HeLa.

23. "It's Alive" (1973-1974)

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Bobbette discovers Henrietta's cells are alive and being used all over the world from a neighbor!

Notice how Skloot uses language to build suspense and to highlight the shock of family as they discover that Henrietta's cells are alive. What do they believe about Henrietta? What do they believe about doctors and scientists?
In order to sort out the contamination problem, researchers need blood samples from the family. Look at the contrast between what the blood was truly for and what the family thought it was for!
Notice how even in 1973 the idea of "informed consent" is still not understood nor applied (184). It wasn't until late in 1973 that the Protection of Human Subject regulations were first being reviewed.
How does the author use pathos when describing how Susan Hsu obtained blood samples from the family?
Analyze the last paragraph of the chapter. What does Hsu's request reveal about her attitude toward the Lackses? (190)
What does Skloot reveal by ending the chapter with Hsu's request? (190)

24. "Least They Can Do" (1975)

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How did Rolling Stone reporter Michael Rogers find Henrietta's real name?
What facts about Gey's life support the assertion that he never personally profited from the development of HeLa? (193-194)
Who does profit from HeLa cells? To what extent?
Deborah begins researching HeLa, but it terrifies her.
McKusick and Hsu published the Lackses genetic information. Thanks partially to HIPPA law passed in 1996, this unethical practice is also illegal and can result in a $250,000 fine and 10 years in jail (197-198)
Why do you think Skloot ends this chapter with teh introduction of John Moore's story?

25. "Who Told You You Could Sell My Spleen?" (1976-1988)

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This chapter deals with many of the legal aspects of cells.
How does the story of John Moore and "Mo" connect to Henrietta's cells?
Moore's LA Times Obituary
1980 Supreme Court case sets a legal precedent for patenting biological products such as cells.
Think about this: Once Golde patented Moore's blood, Moore could no longer sell his own tissues. Do we know what happens to the parts of us left behind after medical procedures?

26. Breach of Privacy (1980-1985)

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Consider the ethical consequences of excerpts of Henrietta's medical records being released by a writer who neither verified the information nor sought approval from the family.
Catalog the ways in which the medical community rationalized using HeLa cells without permission.
Richard Axel wins a Nobel Prize for using HeLa cells to better understand HIV.

27. The Secret of Immortality" (1984-1995)

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Several theories about the reason HeLa cells are so powerful are presented. Which is the most compelling? Why?
Explain the argument that HeLa are their own species now.
What is the Hayflick Limit? How does this relate to HeLa?

28. After London (1996-1999)

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What did Deborah hope would happen as a result of the BBC documentary?
Roland Pattillo organizes the HeLa Cancert Control Symposium.
Reread Deborah's Morehouse College speech. What kind of understanding did she want people to have?
Notice the reaction to the BBC doc in Turner's Station.
What do you learn about Cofield?
What are Deborah's fears about her sister Elsie?
Notice how three storylines converge at the end of this chapter

29. A Village of Henriettas (2000)

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Why do you think Deborah decided to talk with Skloot? How do you know?
What is the effect of the gift from Christoph Lengauer on the family?
Sensationalized journalism led Deborah to believe that her mother's clones could be found all over London.
Why do you think Deborah is so protective of her mother's medical records?

30. Zakariyya (2000)

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How does Skloot select anecdotes and events which build suspense about meeting Zakariyya?
Examine tone and diction to evaluate Zakariyya's varying attitudes.
How does Zakariyya react to the gift of the image of his mother's cells?

31. Hela, Goddess of Death (2000-2001)

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What similarities are drawn between Hela (the Marvel super villain and goddess of Death) and Henrietta and her cells?

32. "All That's My Mother" (2001)

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Compare and contrast Skloot, Deborah, and Zakariyya's interactions at the Jesus Statue at Johns Hopkins. How are each characterized in that moment?
How is Christoph Langauer characterized?

33. The Hospital for the Negro Insane (2001)

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Contrast the tone of the word "Crownsville" with "Hospital for the Negro Insane."
How does Paul Lurz foreshadow what happened to Elsie?
Examine the written description of the photo of Elsie. What do the records indicate about how she died? What can you infer from the records?
Compare and contrast the reactions Deborah has to the information about her older sister.

34. The Medical Records (2001)

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In what ways does Skloot become part of the story of Henrietta?
How are nonverbals misinterpreted?

35. Soul Cleansing (2001)

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How does the laying of hands further connect Deborah and Rebecca?

36. Heavenly Bodies (2001)

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What does Rebecca come to understand about the family in this chapter? How does it change her perspective?

37. "Nothing to Be Scared About" (2001)

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What event prevented Deborah from attending the conference?
What prevents Deborah from attending school?
What physical ailments does Deborah suffer from?
How does Davon save Deborah's life?
Compare and contrast the way Henrietta's cells helped the world and the family's difficulties? How are the two interconnected?

38. The Long Road to Clover (2009)

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Examine the language used to describe the changes in Clover.
Imagine what would have been lost had Skloot not begun her research when she did.
What is the effect of ending the book with Deborah's words.

_{Henrietta's Grandchildren speak at Stanford}

About the Henrietta Lacks Foundation

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:37:32 UTC

Check out the Foundation Website!

Where Are They Now?

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:38:08 UTC

This is a terrific section. After becoming so familiar with the characters, it is interesting to see where they were at the time of publication.

Afterward

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:38:51 UTC

Fascinating look at the legality - then and now - of all that happened to Henrietta's cancer cells.

Cast of Characters

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:39:51 UTC

A great resource! Bookmark this page. Will be helpful when you lose track of the name of a particular cousin or child.
TIP: Add your own notes to help you remember important details about the people in the book!

Timeline

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:40:56 UTC

This is more a timeline of HeLa cells than of Henrietta's life.

Notes

jzk1029 — 2023-06-04 21:42:01 UTC

Don't miss the great resources in the Notes Section!
Here's a tour!