Immortal Life of Henereietta Lacks Analysis

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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Analysis Inside every person holds a mystery amongst its own. As Elie Wiesel states it beautifully “We must not see any person as an abstraction. Instead, we must see in every person a universe with its own secrets, with its own treasures, with its own sources of anguish, and with some measure of triumph.” This imagery invokes tales of self-discovery, human importance and equal opportunities. In the novel The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, we are not meet with these images. The true story of a woman, who unknowingly changed the world of science, is outlined with the misery of a family left behind in her death. As the story unfolds, it is apparent the disuse of one woman's value and a family shrouded in questions of what is to come of the secrets the world is science is withholding. Henrietta Lacks was a bustling African American, raised on her family’s tobacco farm in Clover Virginia. Her life seemed ordinary as she married, raised her children and took care of the lives that crossed her path. Henrietta truly took to heart the idea Elie portrays in realizing one's self worth and not to treat oneself or others as an abstraction. She truly embodied this value by stepping out and caring for others, along with herself. Henrietta’s cousin and dear friend Sadie confided with Rebecca “Hennie made life come alive--- bein with her was like bein with fun. Hennie just loves peoples. She was a person that could really make the good things come out of you” (Skloot, 43). With bright red nails, sassy pumps and a flip in her hair that danced around her face Henrietta was ready for any adventure. Abstraction would never be a descriptor for Henrietta, she exuded her confidence. Yet, the idea of abstraction, placed by people around us, can outweigh our own confidence. Henrietta never could predict her

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