Summer Entry 3

The Lives of a Cell

by Lewis Thomas

Pages 358-360


            Lewis Thomas was a physician, researcher, writer, and dean of both NYU and Yale medical schools.  He wrote for The New England Journal of Medicine and is renowned for his collection of essays in The Lives of Cells: Notes of a Biology Watcher, earning him the title of “poet-philosopher of medicine.” Thomas’ essay, The Lives of Cells, translates abstruse scientific topics into lucid language that is easy for the general public to understand.  He also makes the argument that humans are a part of nature, rather than the popular belief that humans are separate and superior to all other species.  

            Thomas utilizes comparisons, such as metaphors and similes, to help readers comprehend foreign concepts as he cites his reasons.  He argues that human cells are not 100% originally human, “We are shared, rented, occupied… My cells are no longer the pure line entities I was raised with; they are ecosystems more complex than Jamaica Bay” (Thomas 358).  Thomas refers to the human body as if it were space populated by multiple organisms.  He also makes use of asyndeton when he omits a conjunction, creating an emphatic tone that adds to his credibility.  

            The author also personifies mitochondria, centrioles, basal bodies, and other cellular parts when he writes, “perhaps it is they who walk through the local park in the early morning, sensing my senses, listening to my music, thinking my thoughts” (Thomas 359).  Again, the usage of asyndeton keeps a consistent emphatic tone throughout the essay.  Meanwhile, Thomas also gives life to parts of the cell that would otherwise be obscure and abstract to his audience.  Thomas appeals to his readers’ emotions by portraying cell parts as human-like and more relatable; now readers can imagine listening to Taylor Swift with their mitochondria as though they are best friends.   By helping the audience grasp the technical side of his argument, Thomas successfully convinces readers that humans are not superior, but rather interconnected with microscopic organisms living symbiotically in each of their cells, helping them to breath while also possibly sensing and experiencing what humans feel.    

(344 words)

Interconnected

Every living organism is interwoven together 

like all the working parts of a giant cell, the earth.

Source: Isac Goulart’s The Banyan Tree in Maui, Hawaii