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Paul DeMarte
ENGL 2030-004
22 February 2021
Article Argument Analysis Essay
In an article called “A Simple Way to Improve a Billion Lives: Eyeglasses” from The
New York Times, Andrew Jacobs expounds on the topic of vision in third world countries.
The article begins with describing a 12-year old boy from India who has had to give up his
passions, struggles with his education, and who has dangers applied to his everyday life
simply because of his poor vision. He takes this boy’s story and connects it to the massive
groups in Africa, Bolivia, Asia, and of course, India that struggle with the same problems.
The economic issues of families not being able to afford glasses or eye care is simply one of
the barriers in providing clear vision to children and adults; countries not having enough eye
doctors or eye clinics to provide the eye care that the country needs is, too, another
contribution to the conditions people have to live with simply because of their vision.
1.) Thesis/ Purpose: While Andrew Jacobs informs the audience about the lack of
resources in third world countries to provide their people with eye care, he also
constructs his article to notify people about the solution taking place in Panipat and
how it then impacts all countries and communities if the solution travels.
2.) Andrew Jacobs writes about this article through the lens of logistical elements that
relate to a simple way to better, if not, save lives throughout the world. By doing so,
he does not contain any assumptions as he relates to raw and natural stories from
people experiencing the struggles that come with bad vision. Not to mention, Jacobs’
efforts to connect real-life situations to factual information was successful as he not
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only is able to persuade through logos, but also through pathos; the audience receives
an awakening, especially those who were reading with their glasses or contacts on, in
how many people take for granted the resources and care they are given simply
because of the country they live in or the economical status they have.
a.) Thus, Jacobs appeals to the persuasion of ethos as he implements hyperlinks
in the article so that his evidence can be presented to the audience by a simple
click. His credentials are presented through this in how he demonstrates and is
comfortable with sharing where he got his information from instead of stating
facts that have no trace back to where it originated from. He also has his own
credentials of being a reporter who works for the health and science desk for
The New York Times and he was previously working in Asia to preserve
certain architectures; this can further expand on his knowledge or abilities to
discuss eye care in other countries.
3.) In this article, the target audience is who lack the knowledge of unperceived issues
in third world countries like curing poor vision for poor families. Although there are
more health related issues that can be interpreted as more dangerous, serious, or
concerning for people around the globe, the lack of support for clear vision leads to
tragic deaths, unsafe living routines, and overall, it physically and emotionally can
take a toll on the individuals suffering from blurry vision.
4.) Tone: Jacobs’ writing is woven between three different yet corresponding tones. By
starting the article with the sentimental and heartfelt story of a 12 year old boy,
Shivam Kumar, who experiences failure, degrading comments, and separation from
normalcy in childhood, Jacobs explores the tone of benevolence. However,
throughout the article he enforces a formal and informative tone in how he presents
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his evidence, and how he balances the images and the text to demonstrate both factual
and personal demonstrations of the issue.
5.) Relevant factors/ missing material/ opposition: In this article, Jacobs informs the
overarching idea of eye care and poor vision in third world countries in which he
writes about a solution of a nonprofit group, EYElliance, raising money to solve
uncorrected vision in the world. However, the missing material that remains as a
mystery when readers finish the article would be the question of what happens to the
other countries, besides Panipat, India, who did not receive the support of eye care?
Will EYElliance be able to provide the resources as they did to Panipat’s community
to other countries?
a.) Otherwise, Jacobs considered many opposing positions in correspondence of
this topic in which he discusses how some widely known people disregarded
the issue in how they believed that there are more important things to be
resolved. This contrasts with the urgency of the organizations and victims of
poor eyesight to fix this global issue. He also covers the relevant factors that
are needed to make up this article and to fully elaborate on the topic, issue,
and resolution.
