The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks discussion questions

Why do you think the Lacks family is recluant to speak to Skloot

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Do you think doctors should be empathetic? Why or why not?

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CCSS.W.9-10.1A

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Many people, like Gary believed that the discovery of Henrietta’s ever dividing cells was God’s plan. Others however feel like they were stolen and should never have been taken. What do you believe and why?

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CCSS.W.9-10.1A

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In 2021, Lawrence Lacks started a lawsuit against Thermo Fisher,a medical supplier that sold HeLa cells. Do you believe that HeLa cells should be sold for profit or distributed freely? And you think they should be sold, do you think her family should receive compensation, or a part of the sales?

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Do you think patients who have their tissues and blood sent to laboratory for biopsies and screenings should retain the right to those tissues or do they belong to the hospital ?

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CCSS.W.9-10.1A

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Colloquialism as a literary device is the use of slang and informal speech in dialogue to make it more realistic. Rebecca Skloot utilizes colloquial speech in her writing to retain the voice of her interviewees. Many reader however reported disliking this about the book in their reviews. Do you think keeping the dialogue as is was the beat option? Or do you think she should have polished up the dialogue before publishing?

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CCSS.RL.9-10.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

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CCSS.W.9-10.1B

HeLa cells have been and remain crucial in medical research. Because of them, the polio virus has been eradicated, we know more about cross contamination and have started making cures for common STIs. HeLa cells were, however taken without the knowledge of the donor or her family. Do you think it was fair to take Henrietta’s cells? Do you think it’s fair that they are still used today and why?

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CCSS.RI.9-10.1

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