Henrietta Lacks Ethics Worksheet

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Date:

📚 Part 1: Background & Key Terms

1. Brief Summary: Henrietta Lacks was an African American woman whose cells were taken without her knowledge or consent in 1951. These "HeLa" cells became crucial for medical research, leading to countless scientific breakthroughs. However, her family was not informed for decades and received no compensation, raising serious ethical questions about informed consent, privacy, and medical exploitation.

2. Key Terms - Match each term to its definition:

A. Persuasion

B. Ethics

C. Audience

D. Purpose

___ The group of people a writer aims to convince

___ Moral principles that govern right and wrong behavior

___ The act of convincing others to accept a belief or take action

___ The reason or goal behind persuasive writing

🔍 Part 2: Ethical Issues Analysis

3. Graphic Organizer: Identify and analyze ethical issues from Henrietta Lacks's story.

Ethical Issue #1: ________________________________

Who is affected by this issue? ________________________________

Ethical Issue #2: ________________________________

Who is affected by this issue? ________________________________

4. Audience & Purpose Analysis: How might different audiences view these ethical issues?

Medical researchers might argue:

Henrietta's family might argue:

Patients' rights advocates might argue:

✍️ Part 3: Persuasive Appeals & Reflection

5. Identify the Appeals: Read this excerpt and identify examples of ethos, pathos, and logos.

"As a medical researcher with 20 years of experience (ethos), I understand the heartbreak families feel when medical decisions are made without their knowledge (pathos). However, statistics show that 90% of major medical breakthroughs in the past 50 years relied on cell research like HeLa cells (logos)."

Ethos (credibility): ________________________________

Pathos (emotion): ________________________________

Logos (logic/facts): ________________________________

6. Sentence Starters for Writing: Use these to help express your thoughts about ethical issues:

• "One major ethical concern is..."

• "This issue affects people because..."

• "Different audiences might disagree because..."

• "A fair solution would be..."

7. Reflection: How does knowing your audience change how you would write persuasively about Henrietta Lacks's story?

8. Critical Thinking: Why is it important to consider ethics when writing to persuade others?

Notes Section:

Dyslexia-Friendly Option: Ask your teacher for audio support or alternative text formats if needed.

Henrietta Lacks Ethics Worksheet

Henrietta Lacks Ethics Worksheet

📚 Part 1: Background & Key Terms

🔍 Part 2: Ethical Issues Analysis

✍️ Part 3: Persuasive Appeals & Reflection

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