The Body Worlds Controversy

I’m sure everyone has heard about the Body Worlds exhibit by now. The exhibit features donated bodies that have gone through the process of "plastination", which replaces all water and fats in the body with plastic. Some bodies are contorted so it appears they are playing cards, jumping etc.; other bodies have been sliced (I wish I could have used a better word) to show body interiors like the cross section of a healthy lung versus that of a smoker’s lung. The reason defending the exhibit is that it is artistic, educational and will give viewers a greater respect for the human body.

I attended the exhibit when it came to the St. Louis Science Center in 2007 much to my mother's chagrin. She had a firm religious argument against it, saying that our bodies are a gift from God and that we were made in his image and are disrespected if mutilated and put on display, which I understand. While I also recognize what Gunther Van Hagens (the developer of plastination) is trying to express with his collections, I believe that the arguments against Body Worlds outweigh the benefits.

All bodies in the exhibit are claimed to have been from people who consented that their bodies be plastinated and presented. At the exhibit they display said documents as proof, however, the wording seemed vague and probably wouldn't pass by a lawyer. Rumors indicate that some bodies were used without consent and stolen as is the claim with bodies of Chinese prisoners. Van Hagen denies this, but for good measure returned six bodies in question back to China anyway. "Consent" is a key word nowadays, but I can't help but get a funny feeling about people consenting to the process of plastination. I've heard that as we get older we feel more comfortable thinking and talking about death. My grandma has no problem with discussing her desire to be cremated, which I have no qualms with, unless it is someone in my direct family. Since I am personally very skittish about plastination, I have no idea why anyone would want this to happen to their body after they die. I mean, do you know what they do to these bodies? It’s stuff out of a horror film! Imagine the killers from Texas Chainsaw Massacre and House of Wax doing what they want to your body after you die…Ya, it’d be exactly like that. I can understand donating ones’ organs or body to a university or hospital, but it's another to donate your body to this exhibit to be "science" for a bunch of giggling 13 year olds (No offense to 13 year olds; I think you contribute greatly to society, but you and other teenagers do giggle too much).

Van Hagens wants viewers to respect the human body through his exhibit and while there is a guaranteed high amount of 'Ooo's and Ahhh's' I think it would be fair to say 98% of someone's respect for life doesn't come from a visit to Body Worlds. Kids get hurt; their knees get scraped or fingers cut. They put a Band-Aid on and in a few days they're healed and I don't know about anyone else, but I was like "Holy! I have magical healing!" I learned I wasn't magical; my body, just like almost everyone else’s, fixes itself. A simple science class can teach people that when your eyes are dry the ocular ducts create tears. Your body takes pizza or broccoli or milk and sends it all over your body to be used as energy, nourishment and growth. Everyone who has taken a gym class knows that you need to stretch and warm the leg and arm muscles like a rubber band. Body Worlds only physically shows us what we already know; our bodies may look simply constructed from the outside, but are actually comprised of complex systems and functions. There is still so much about our bodies being researched that we do not understand like parts of the brain, why we dream or psychological disorders. Perhaps these areas would be a better resource for time and donations?

If I stop the argument here, I would say these body displays are neat to see, but there is no need to continue creating these figures. It’s like movie studios making a third Hulk film; like we get it; there are only so many ways you can show the world a man turning into a big, green monster/hero guy. From the first few Body Worlds collections, I conjectured that Gunther Van Hagens was just an enthusiastic German anatomist, but a “piece” in his latest exhibit has me thinking he’s a mild necrophiliac. In 2009, Hagens revealed in “Body Works: The Cycle of Life” two plastinated bodies having sex. He defends himself by saying, ‘death and sex are both taboo topics. I’m bringing them together. Death belongs to life…without sex no life would exist.” Well I’m not buying it, buddy. This has standard European perversion written all over it. I say leave the “birds and the bees” talk to parents and educators, not the dead!

To add salt to protestors’ wounds, you can now buy these bodies or bits of them, if you prefer. Redeemably, anyone wanting these specimens needs written proof that they will use thee….merchandise for research, teaching or medical purposes. If you’re not a doctor, scientist or biology teacher don’t be upset that you’re missing out on owning your very own plastinated body. Lay folk can always purchase jewelry crafted from animal corpses, including necklaces made from horse slices, wristbands made from giraffe tails and earrings made from bull penises. HOT DAMN! Buy them here! - http://www.plastination-products.com/Lifestyle:::4.html

St. Louis natives will have noticed that some of the exhibits’ bodies have been put out in the open at the Galleria in the past year, to which I say, 'gross'. The mall is no place for these displays whether you think they are super cool art or taboo or just plain unsettling. Sure, people who want to view the bodies for free now have access, but do you know who else has access? Simple shoppers who just want to eat their Auntie Anne’s pretzel while finding a little black dress before their Friday night date without seeing a corpse...that’s who!

I’m getting queasy so I’m going to wrap this up. Human beings are so much greater than our bodies and one will not grasp our complexity (anatomically, physiologically or psychologically) by viewing unskinned and deconstructed vessels of a former soul. However, as long as people are willing to consent to this I’m sure Hagens will always look to shock using the human body as his artistry clay. If you haven’t gone yet and you plan to go, be forewarned that after seeing the exhibit, you will want to shower and avoid pasta with red sauce and all meat, perhaps even meat byproducts, for a few days.

Anyone care to comment (nicely)?