Graduation Speech In This Is Water By David Foster Wallace

In the Commencement Speech, “This is Water: Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life,” Wallace claims that people are naturally self- centered. (235) We only tend to see the world as it relates or pertains to us. Wallace’s speech is meant to change the graduate’s perspective on the world. Wallace believes that the graduates should heed his advice because it will eventually provide an important

This is Water, was a commencement speech given by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College in 2005. Ever since this speech has been given it has become well known. Because of the length, it can be hard to read through the speech while trying to understand the whole idea of it. Wallace fills the speech with stories, examples, and vivid ideas while trying to convince these college graduates how to view life in a positive perspective. While this speech is packed full of ideas he manages to give it in a way outside of the norm for commencement speeches. Yet still gets all the information to the graduates and anyone else who listens to it.

“This is Water” starts off with Mr. Wallace telling the Graduates the requirements of delivering a commencement speech, followed by a short story of two fish in the water. The story goes as follows, there are these two young an oblivious fish swimming in the water, they are soon met by an older and wiser fish and the older fish says “Morning, Boys. How’s the Water?’. The two young fish swim on and then one of them asks “What the hell is water?’ The question asked by the small fish is a story to illustrate to the Graduates to be fully aware of the world around you, to be fully conscious and woke of your

Through proving that we are not always correct, and reminding the audience that different people can have different views of reality, Wallace is able to use logical reasoning to show that humans have the ability to change their perspectives.

The author of “This is Water”, David Foster Wallace, uses the anecdote of the wise old fish and the younger fish to show us the importance of being aware of our surroundings. At the end of the speech when Wallace states “This is water” again it is trying to remind us that life is what you let it to be.

In David Foster Wallace’s Commencement Speech, he opens with a short parable about how a fish greets two other fishes and ask them how’s the water today, this parable introduces us to his message which is changing that default setting which is hard-wired into our brains to have a life worth living. I agree with his statement because this is’nt just the first time this formula has been brought to our attention. Many success people have said this statement in some form or fashion, we can even look at David Sedaris’s commencement speech.

One of the finest commencement speeches was given by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College. Wallace’s speech can be viewed as enlightening to those who are often blindly single-minded. It forces the audience to take a look at the way they approach everyday situations, rather than being self-centered, consider others before yourself. However, many overlook Wallace’s impeccable rhetorical maneuvers, focusing on the constant clichés and fictional anecdotes used. What people don’t realize is these clichés and fictional anecdotes are what make Wallace’s speech effective and reinforce the basic principles we were taught as a child, to share and think of others before ourselves. Overlooking Wallace’s flawless technique is doing a disservice to

In regards to how to live life, Wallace illustrates that we should not live life by default and be aware of our surroundings. For instance, he states that if “you are operating on your default setting, then you, like me, probably won’t consider possibilities that aren’t annoying or miserable.” To explain, our perception of life cannot continuously be through rose-colored glasses even though there a few occurrences that we are tempted to in order to evade the unforgiving reality and the pessimism accompanied by it. What Wallace is attempting to gage is that sometimes, the only option we have is to truly face reality and be aware of it rather than be blinded by blissful ignorance projected to divert from our suffering. Furthermore, sometimes we need to take the initiative to question our motives and the norms of society, and to hone in on our engagements that affect other for our progression. To relate this to Naikan, introspection towards our memories, even the grim ones, aids us in reforming ourselves to consider what suffering we have initiated towards others as well as to inquire what we have certainly completed for others. If these actions caused sufferings to another person(s), we must accept our wrongdoing, learn from it, and

“What the hell is water?” “This is Water” was originally given as a speech to college students before it was published in essay form. David Foster Wallace, in his essay “This is Water”, addresses the importance of awareness and perceptiveness of others. He believes this and proper education can help people become well-adjusted to the world around them. He adopts a humorous, personal, and important tone in order to accomplish his rhetorical purpose.

Many people tend to become frustrated with their daily lives and start to have a negative mindset of blaming other people for their problems. In David Foster Wallace’s speech, “This is Water,” he informed the audience of the importance for everyone to know they have a “natural default-setting,” which is the automatic way that a person feels they are the center of the universe and that negative situations are other people’s fault. He also discussed the importance of trying not to act in this “natural default-setting”, and try to think of problems that other people have to go through in their lives. The main purpose of Wallace’s speech was to persuade the audience to fight the urge of staying in their natural default setting to prevent frustration in a person’s daily life.

Many people tend to become frustrated with their daily lives and start to have a negative mindset of blaming other people for their problems. In David Foster Wallace’s speech, “This is Water,” he informed the audience of the importance for everyone to know they have a natural default setting, which is the automatic way that a person feels they are the center of the universe and that negative situations are other people’s fault. He also discussed the importance of trying not to act in this natural default setting, and try to think of problems that other people have to go through in their lives. The main purpose of Wallace’s speech was to persuade the audience to fight the urge of staying in their natural default setting to prevent

In “This is Water” Wallace speaks from his own experiences in order to help others; he went through depression before finally hanging himself in 2008. One should not think of this as contradicting his points, though. This act shows that Wallace, too, was human, and capable of mistakes. Furthermore, he wanted people to have better lives than he did, and he believed they can do so by following his advice.

I believe that existence is comprised of hundreds and millions of different realities intermingling and colliding into one another. I also believe that at the center of each reality there lies the individual who crafted it. Our perception of what is real and false exists solely in our own minds, and our minds are what determines the lense in which we perceive the world. Our perception is largely influenced by our psyche; how we live and think stems from our perception of the world. Our brains are directly influenced by a number of key factors, including but not limited to; societal connotations, individual experience, instinctual desires, environmental factors, and cognitive thought. These factors, as well as other conditions, are what determine our “default setting.” In his noteable “This is Water” speech, given at the 2005 Kenyon Commencement Address, David Foster Wallace argues a similar idea as he explains his take on the phrase “teaching you how to think”. Through his use of relatable parables and anecdotes and repetition and reverent focus of words like “choice” and “awareness” he paints a livid picture of the use of conscious choice in our daily lives. He stresses the concept of a self centered “default setting” that comes from an individual's “blind certainty” and the repercussions that deferring to that default can have on an individual's lifestyle and fulfilment. If we are unable to recognise the water in which we dwell we will always remain unaware, stuck in an

Despite my familial influences there is one man who has changed my entire college experience and has overall contributed to the man I am today. First and foremost, I want to respectfully introduce the speaker of “This is Water”, Mr. David Foster Wallace. David Foster Wallace was an American short story writer, novelist, essayist, as well as a professor of English and creative writing. After watching his 2005 Kenyon Commencement I have gained a new level of respect for David Foster Wallace and his incredible journey. I consider myself an author and “This is Water” contributed and enforced my love for writing. I mention this because it goes to show that his words have rung in the ears of society and changed many lives; including mine. He left

“This is Water” is full of rhetorical strategies, some of which can be easily missed if one is not keenly looking for their presence. Wallace’s purpose has a dramatic impact on readers in his unique strategy choice. He chose to combine parallelism and repetition. He draws our attention to the downfalls of our