So naked, they don't even have skin

[dreaminghope]

On Thursday night, Russ and I finally went to see the Body Worlds 3 exhibit at our Science Center. If you've never heard of this exhibit, it is an exhibit of real human bodies that have been preserved by a method called plastination. There are displays of different body organs, complete and in cross-section, and displays of whole bodies.

Most of the bodies – referred to as plastinates in the exhibit – were displayed without glass cases, so you could walk around them and lean in close to see the muscles and tendons and organs.

One plastinate, about a third of the way into the exhibit, was about how the muscles connect, so the organs had all been removed. Facing the display, I could see the body's spine at the back of the empty torso. I had a rush of light-headedness. I wasn't feeling faint or squeamish; it was just a sudden physical reaction to my sudden realization (or re-realization) that I was looking at a real human body. The body in front of me was once a living person. That spine once bent so the person could pick up a pet or child.

There was another plastinate, in a gymnast pose, that showed the muscles under tension. I was admiring the grace in the limbs and the way the muscles all work together when Russ came up beside me. And I had another rush of light-headedness as I realized that beneath Russ' skin, he would look like that plastinate. I would also look like that. Everyone around us was exactly the same under their skin: muscles and bones and organs. Our spleens may be different sizes, but no one's going to tell.

You couldn't tell what race the plastinates were. Without their fat and skin, you can't tell what shape they were. Without looking at their genitals, you couldn't even tell if they were male or female. Because the exhibit is about the human body, there were no names or stories attached to any of the displays.

We are all alike under our skins. It is one of those super-simple truths that sounds cliché until you are actually looking at a bunch of bodies without skin and they do look alike. Even now, thinking about that, I feel that light-headed sensation again.

Comments

[dayweletgo.livejournal.com]

That is so beautiful.

[iisz.livejournal.com]

I *really* want to see that.

[meoka2368.livejournal.com]

Zombies, anyone? :P

[cosmolinguist]

I've seen things like that: the immediate shock of the unusual appearance wears off and you are left with that crazy, dizzying revelation. It's good that we don't think about stuff like that too much, but I think it's also good to actually, every once in a while, appreciate the things we have to take for granted the rest of the time.

[finn-mac-lir.livejournal.com]

I was quite interested in going to see that display because the human body fascinates me. However, after I learned that the founder of this technique was obtaining bodies of Chinese prisoners to use for his displays, I decided against it.

People in China can be imprisoned and executed for practicing a different religion or for simply disagreeing with the state. The state then sells their organs or their corpse without obtaining their consent.

The founder of the "plastination" technique has reported that he no longer obtains bodies from China but I dunno for sure. How can I be sure one of those people wasn't tortured and killed for believeing in the same God I believe in? :-(

-F-

[oldefool.livejournal.com]

I find it hard to believe that we are all the same, underneath the surface. I mean, why should we be the same inside when we're not the same outside?