 |
| Original Art from the National Journal issue with "Jackie's Goodbye" |
REMEMBER: No class on Tuesday--just finish/turn in Paper #1 to my office. Then start reading and responding to the questions below...
For Thursday: Stanley, “Jackie’s Goodbye”
(pp.379-408)
Definitions:
deplorable (379)
incredulous (380)
burgeoning (383)
sporadic (385)
tenuous (390)
extraneous (392)
cognition (395)
euthanasia (400)
panacea (403)
mandate (406)
Answer TWO of the following:
Q1: Why is Alzheimer’s a relatively recent disease,
one that we didn’t think a lot about 100 years ago? Related to this, why has so
little been done to a disease that now affects around 5 millions people, “with
more than 400,00 new cases each year—numbers that are expected to double by
2050”?
Q2: Why did Jim Crabtree call the triple-murder of
his wife and mother by his father a “mercy killing”? Though she calls this
“particularly chilling,” is Stanley at all sympathetic with his story? Why or why
not?
Q3: When talking about Alzeheimer’s we
typically talk about the victims, but in Stanley
Q4: Though not all of us will get Alzheimer’s or
have to care for anyone who does, why is this still an important essay for us
to read? What weaknesses of modern American life does this reveal? What are our
cultural “blind spots” both as individuals and as a nation? What does Stanley
Vocabulary
ReplyDelete1. Deplorable- causing or being a subject for grief or regret; lamentable.
2. Incredulous- not credulous; disinclined or indisposed to believe; skeptical.
3. Burgeoning- to grow or develop quickly; flourish.
4. Sporadic- (of similar things or occurrences) appearing or happening at irregular intervals in time; occasional.
5. Tenuous- thin or slender in form, as a thread.
6. Extraneous- introduced or coming from without; not belonging or proper to a thing; external; foreign.
7. Cognition- the act or process of knowing; perception.
8. Euthanasia- the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, a person or animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition.
9. Panacea- a remedy for all disease or ills; cure-all.
10. Mandate- a command or authorization to act in a particular way on a public issue given by the electorate to its representative.
Questions
Q3. While talking about Alzheimer’s we generally talk about the victims because we think these are the people that it mostly affects, but in all actuality it affects everyone surrounding the Alzheimer’s victim. The family members and caregivers are put on a constant strain of taking care of their loved one. The worrying and stress alone can take years off the caregiver’s life.
Q4. This is still an important essay for us to read because it is important for us to know the facts. We need more people to not only find a cure for this disease, but to help find ways to treat people while they are suffering from it. As a society today we are constantly looking to cure cancer and other major diseases, but we are overlooking another major problem in our lives. Stanley wants us to recognize that Alzheimer’s and many other diseases are out there. And the victims of these diseases also need our help.
“Jackie’s Goodbye”
ReplyDelete1.deplorable- deserving strong condemnation
2.incredulous- unwilling or unable to believe something
3.burgeoning- to have begun growing or increase rapidly
4.sporadic- occurring at irregular intervals or only in a few places
5.tenuous- very weak or slight
6.extraneous- irrelevant or unrelated to the subject being dealt with
7.cognition- the activites of thinking, learning, understanding, and remembering
8.euthanasia-the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering
9.panacea-a solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases
10.mandate- an official order or commission to do something
Short Answer:
1. We didn’t think a lot about Alzheimers until 100 years ago because the human life expectancy did not extend high enough until that time for Alzheimers to become prevelant in society. It was not until the early 1900’s where the life expectancy of the general public extended high enough where the effects of senility to start being viewed as abnormal. Dr. Alzheimers discovery began to cause people in society to wonder whether senility was a normal occurrence. As the average increased, so did the prevelancy of the disease.
4. It is a very important essay for us to read because Alzheimers is a very common disease that effects many people in our society. We need to have a strong societal knowledge of this disease in order to combat the disease the best that we can, and to ensure that we do the best we can in order to divert as many resources possible to do the research necessary to find ways to prevent this disease for future generations. I believe Stanley wants us to recognize how little we’ve done to do anything meaningful to stop this disease.
Deplorable: Deriving strong condemnation. Adj.
ReplyDeleteIncredulous: Unwilling or unable to believe something. Adj.
Burgeoning: Growing or increasing rapidly. V.
Sporadic: Occurring at irregular intervals or only in a few places; scattered or isolated. Adj.
Tenuous: Very weak or slight. Adj.
Extraneous: Irrelevant or unrelated to the subject being dealt with. Adj.
Cognition: The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses. N.
Euthanasia: Mercy killing. N.
Panacea: A solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases. N.
Mandate: An official order or commission to do something. N.
Q3: Nobody wants to see their mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, children, etc. lose every bit of themselves to a disease. Yeah, we know how bad Alzheimer’s is and we know the outcome of it. Yeah, it is horrible. But who is speaking up for the volunteers that give up their entire lives to take care of the people afflicted? We are so focused on how the disease affects the patient that we are forgetting the people that keep the patient alive. What are we doing to save THAT person? Behind every human being with Alzheimer’s is nurse, caregiver, relative, wife, husband, FIGHTING to keep the person afflicted half sane and safe. I think that Alzheimer’s effects not only the person with it, but all of the people around them as well.
Q4: I believe that it is important for each and every person to be educated on the different diseases and illnesses. Without education and knowledge on these topics, there can be no awareness. In today’s society, we are so wrapped up in our own events and problems that we forget about death, and we forget about suffering, and then we forget about change. Change is all we have, all that we’ve ever had. Without change, there would be no wheel. Without change, there would be no progress, no cures, no care. In our culture, we are blind to things that do not concern us individually. With this man-made wool pulled over our eyes, shielding us from the bad things that we refuse to see, we will never see any progress. People will continue dying from preventable things. Children will continue to starve. We will continue to live our pitiful lives BLIND to what this world really is. There will be no awareness; there will be no cure.
Definitions
ReplyDelete1. Deplorable- Deserving strong condemnation.
2. Incredulous- Unwilling or unable to believe something.
3. Burgeoning- Begin to grow or increase rapidly; flourish.
4. Sporadic- Occurring at irregular intervals or only in a few places; scattered or isolated.
5. Tenuous- Very weak or slight.
6. Extraneous- Irrelevant or unrelated to the subject being dealt with.
7. Cognition- Mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through, thought, experience, and the senses.
8. Euthanasia- Practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering.
9. Panacea- A solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases.
10. Mandate- An official order or commission to do something.
Questions
1. 100 years ago Alzheimer's disease wasn't a big issue due to the life span of humans. Most people lived between 40 and 50 years and Alzheimer's starting making its appearance mostly to people that are around 50. So little has been done because most of the people are old and people see those that get Alzheimer's as people who have already lived their life. There is also no cure and it cost fortune to keep a person in custodial care. If the disease occurred in the younger stages of human life, more money and research would be put into a way of finding a cure.
2. He called it a mercy kill because it saved his family from living a life they can do nothing about. Also for saving the family from having to pay to keep them all under surveillance for the rest of their lives. She is sympathetic because she knows what he is going through. It is sad to lose someone, but he felt it was better this way so no one had to suffer.