3. Author's Purpose

The author's purpose in writing "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" was to inform. She wanted to explain all that had occurred with the cells of Henrietta, while her family was unaware of everything happening. "They truly had no idea what was going on, and they really wanted to understand." (Skloot) The family was unaware of all the testing that had been done using Henrietta's cells. They did not give anyone permission to use her cells for testing and this book's purpose is to inform not only her family, but everyone else about what had been going on for so many years. "It was so clear they hadn't been treated well." (Skloot) The author wanted to help the family learn more about the cell's as she researched more. The doctors did not tell them much because they knew they didn't have permission to use the cells for testing.