To See or Not to See

Contacts or glasses

To see or not to see

ENG 121

Deborah Cunningham

To see or not to see

The song lyrics of Johnny Nash (1972) "I can see clearly now, the rain is gone, I can see all obstacles in my way." (www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/hardertheycome/icanseeclearlynow.htm) Those lyrics take on a different meaning for a person, who may need to have corrective devices to help with vision. Today, there are many choices in what to choose. Glasses were invented "around 1284 in Italy, Salvino D'Armate is credited with the first wearable eye glasses." (http://inventors.about.com/od/gstartinventions/a/glass_3.htm) Glasses have been a large part in mankind's growth as the centuries have passed by.

As time progressed the first pair of contacts were invented in "1827, English astronomer Sir John Herschel proposed the idea of making a mold of a person's eyes. Such molds would enable the production of corrective lenses that could conform to the front surface of the eye. But it was more than 50 years later that someone actually produced such lenses, and there is some controversy about who did it first. Some reports say German glassblower F.A. Muller used Herschel's ideas to create the first known glass contact lens in 1887. Other reports say Swiss physician Adolf E. Fick and Paris optician Edouard Kalt created and fitted the first glass contact lenses to correct vision problems in 1888." (http://www.allaboutvision.com/contacts/faq/when-invented.htm)

Despite who invented the glasses or the contacts, they both were to help mankind have corrective vision. Both devices have been improved upon over the years, to meet the demands of the individual. Both glasses and Contacts can help an individual with farsightedness, nearsightedness and astigmatism. Glasses can also offer protection for the wearer's eyes, depending upon their field of work, whereas a person would have to wear protective glasses over the eyes, while wearing contacts. Glasses can come in many different sizes, shapes, the lenses can be tinted, anti-glare protected, transitions, they can even be prescription sunglasses.

Contacts have progressed over the years, they come in disposable (change daily), Silicone extended (wear up to thirty days), High definition disposable (wear thirty days) reduce halos, glare. They come in soft, hard, colored, stigmatism, bi-focal. For a young person who loves to go out to night clubs, they can choose any color needed even neon colors or even different styles, tiger eyes, bulls eye, cats eye, only to name a few.

After a visit to the Ophthalmologist and with a prescription