Analyzing the Text and Media
He describes them as metaphorically cursed and in such a poor condition as would have horrified their original owners and residents. His descriptive, solemn rhetoric lays out what tenement life was like in a calm but devastating manner.
He could have used graphs.
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They died at much higher rates than did children living in single tenements. Unfortunately, a photograph of a single sick child probably would not have had as much impact as tables filled with numbers related to dead children would. Numbers may be thought to offer more solid “proof.”
They offer visual proof of how dirty and crowded the tenements were. Additionally, the faces of their inhabitants look absolutely exhausted and even sad, reflecting their hard lives.
Here he is saying that Americans should focus on their own people first, rather than spending so much time, effort, and money trying to improve life for inhabitants of faraway places while their own cities are in deplorable condition.
One pro is that it provides multiple points of view. One con is that the vast amount of information presented may feel overwhelming or difficult to sift through effectively.