Pathos
The author's emotional appeal to the reader is not very consistent; since Mary Roach does use a lot of facts, the only emotional connection to the reader is when she uses humor or respect for the cadavers in certain situations. While Roach writes that cadavers are used for car crash experiments, she humorously adds that "the dead aren't very talented. They can't play water polo, or lace up their boots, or maximize market share. They can't tell a joke, and they can't dance for beans..." (p. 87 Stiff) Even though experiments are conducted on what used to be human beings, Roach makes this idea lighter to the reader by tossing in some humor. The reader also feels emotion when the author regards the cadavers as actual people instead of bodies who no longer have souls; she, like many other scientists and doctors, respects them. She tells of one doctor that "reached up and closed the eyelids" (p. 33) after she finishes dissecting the face of her cadaver; Roach also writes of another situation where a cadaver known as H has just undergone beating-heart surgery. She says that "H has no heart, but hearless is the last thing you'd call her." (p. 195 Stiff) Even though these cadavers pieces of themself, it is the fact that they are helping someone else so that person can live a longer life. The emotional tie with reader allows you to understand more clearly Mary Roach's purpose of what can happen to you when you donate your body to science.