"The Elegant Eyeball" by John Gamel

     Written by John Gamel, an ophthalmology professor at the University of Louisville School of Medicine and author of many scientific articles and personal essays, "The Elegant Eyeball" gives readers a deeper look into Gamel's experience of being an ophthalmologist. The essay was written mainly as a memoir for an older audience – high school and above – who would be able to understand a few medical terms and appreciate Gamel's sometimes-mature humor. Gamel's purpose is to recall experiences from his time as an eye doctor and, through those memories, evoke emotion in his audience.
Gamel mainly uses pathetic appeal to achieve his purpose. When writing about his experience with patient Hans Bergerman, Gamel uses imagery and a personal tone to elicit emotion. Through imagery, he shows the reader the danger of Bergerman's treatment: "The zone that divided success from disaster was devilishly narrow, no greater than the width of a few human hairs." The image of such a small space creates a feeling of stress and anxiety in readers, which is perpetuated when, in a personal tone, Gamel shares his own feelings: "Doug Jacobson [another doctor] ... could not have guessed the quantity of sweat that soaked my armpits as I fired dozens of blue-greens flashes into Bergerman's eye." At the end, Gamel again explains his own emotions when he writes, "My treatment had failed. ... the sight of that dark clot mounded beneath his retina broke my heart." Since Gamel's previous pathetic appeal had allowed readers to connect with him and the patient, they also feel the crushing sadness and even despair that Gamel describes.
Gamel effectively accomplishes his purpose of evoking emotion. He incorporates his own feelings into his various stories via a personal tone and imagery, which allows readers to connect with him and often the patient he describes. Through these appeals to pathos, Gamel successfully produces strong emotions in his audience.

Macular Degeneration:

Normal vision (left) and the same image as a person with macular degeneration (the disease Hans Bergerman had) would see it (right). (Source: http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/maculardegen/armd_facts.asp)