From the beginning of recorded history, speeches have a tendency to be influential as they connect with their audience and illicit a specific thought or emotion. Continuing this custom, writer David Foster Wallace delivered his compelling commencement speech aptly titled, “Commencement Speech,” to an audience of students at Kenyon College in 2005. His purpose is to make the audience aware of our ‘default-setting’ of thinking. His ability to connect with his audience via word choice and the examples of everyday life he provides, proves his speech to be effective. Within his speech, Wallace uses a tone that is both casual and yet forewarning of the dangers of running on what he calls our ‘default-setting.’ This tone creates a relatable and powerful
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In “Commencement Speech,” Wallace states that, “There is no such thing as not worshipping… The only choice we get is what to worship” (657). His emphasis on the word ‘worship’ carries the connotation that part of our ‘default-setting’ is to hold an object or a belief at such a high level of importance, that everything we do revolves around it. His use of the word ‘worship’ creates the sensation of idolizing an intangible deity, which in his mind, is true for anything one may choose to revere. He establishes that by stating, “An outstanding reason for choosing some sort of God or spiritual-type thing to worship…is that pretty much anything else you chose to worship will eat you alive…If you worship money and things… then you will never have enough” (657). Wallace uses the word ‘worship’ as a way of describing what people unconsciously base their lives around. While he could’ve chosen a word of less extremity, the deliberate use of such a word, which generally has a positive implication but a rather bleak one in this context, emphasizes his main point—that no one is liberated from thinking and believing in the way he …show more content…
His choice of words along with his hypothetical scenario provokes a strong personal connection from the audience, creating a more effective way to convey his point of consciously choosing to
In “Commencement Speech,” Wallace states that, “There is no such thing as not worshipping… The only choice we get is what to worship” (657). His emphasis on the word ‘worship’ carries the connotation that part of our ‘default-setting’ is to hold an object or a belief at such a high level of importance, that everything we do revolves around it. His use of the word ‘worship’ creates the sensation of idolizing an intangible deity, which in his mind, is true for anything one may choose to revere. He establishes that by stating, “An outstanding reason for choosing some sort of God or spiritual-type thing to worship…is that pretty much anything else you chose to worship will eat you alive…If you worship money and things… then you will never have enough” (657). Wallace uses the word ‘worship’ as a way of describing what people unconsciously base their lives around. While he could’ve chosen a word of less extremity, the deliberate use of such a word, which generally has a positive implication but a rather bleak one in this context, emphasizes his main point—that no one is liberated from thinking and believing in the way he …show more content…
His choice of words along with his hypothetical scenario provokes a strong personal connection from the audience, creating a more effective way to convey his point of consciously choosing to