In Mary Roach’s book Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers(2003), she explains that life after death is amusing, interesting, and creepy all at the same time. The author introduces in chapters nine thru twelve she discusses head transplants, cannibalism, and different ways to decompose. She firsts explains head decapitation through the history of the guillotine. Also she explains cannibalism through stories of mummies. Her purpose of this book is to educate people of the afterlife and explain that the subject of dead people is unusual. The tone is frank. She seems to have no specific audience in mind because her text does not specifically aim at a particular crowd. |
euthanized — to kill someone so they refrain from suffering (pg. 208)
saner — sound mind (pg. 215)
ailing - preforming under expectations (pg. 234)
nixed — to make something become nothing (pg. 288)
3. Frank, comedic
4. anecdotes- "In the morning...or fetid perspiration. (pgs. 240- 244)
facts- In Arabia there are men 70 to 80 years old who are willing to give their bodies to save others. (pg. 221)
imagery- "On the inside...sense to her." (pg. 169)
defining- "He and a colleague, Alexis Carrel, were the first to master the art of anastomosis: the stitching of one vessel to another without leaks." (pg. 206)
questions - Would any culture go so far as to use human flesh as food simply out of practicality? (pg. 237)
5. Why does the author use photos between each chapter?
Do you think that comedic anecdotes and comments is what made her book famous?
If comedy were applied to every unspoken subject would those subjects become just as normal as any other?
6. "It makes little sense to try to control what happens to your remains when you are no longer around to reap the joys or benefits of that control. People who make elaborate requests concerning disposition of their bodies are probably people who have trouble with the concept of not existing." (pg. 290)
I tried my best to even out the precis and this is the best i could get it.
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