My Life As An Undocumented Immigrant Summary

Jose Antonio Vargas’s article on My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant is a writing about his childhood journey from the Philippines to the United States as an Undocumented Immigrant. Vargas writes this article to emphasize the topic of immigrant and undocumented immigrant in the United States. He uses all three appeals: pathos, ethos, and logic in his writing, in specific, he mostly uses pathos throughout of his entire article with a purpose for the reader to sympathize and to feel compassion for him. The use of these appeals attract many readers, they can feel and understand his purpose is to ask for others to join and support other people who undocumented immigrant like himself. In addition, it gives other undocumented immigrant people courage

Vargas attracts attention to the readers by showing his hardships that he has been going through since he was a child, which is an example of appeal Pathos. From a child knowing not enough English, for many years learn at school and self-learn, he becomes co-editor of The Oracle, the student newspaper at Mountain View High School then a journalist. He is also part of a Post team that won a Pulitzer Prize for the paper’s coverage of the Virginia Tech. However, he is determined to do his best and trying to be as involved as he can with everything, working hard throughout high school and earn better positions with his job. He convinces himself that if he worked hard enough he could really earn his citizenship. Living along with his status, he builds his career as a journalist and tells his secret to some people. After reading this article, the readers can feel his tone such as a good person, a fellow citizen, which is the way to express his use of pathos throughout the entire essay. His effective descriptions of his struggles in life contribute to the emotional tone of compassion, “I grew up here. This is my home. Yet even though I think of myself as an American and consider America my country, my country doesn’t think of me as one of its own” (Vargas) and excite in the reader his kind nature and convince the reader to accept and understand him well, as he says, “I convinced myself that if I worked enough, if I achieved enough, I would be rewarded with citizenship. I felt I could earn it” (Vargas). All of his words are very strong that can win the reader’s,