David Foster Essay

Through various differences and changes within medium, David Foster Wallace’s original graduation commencement speech sends a completely message to that of the published book. This notion is due to how the published book “This is water” by the Little, Brown, and Company changed, removed, and added numerous word or sentences that inherently change the original meaning David Foster Wallace initially delivered. In David Foster Wallace’s original speech, he attempts to advice his audience to think about others and different possibilities of the countless things around one-self while not seeing yourself as the center of the universe. This idea is perpetuated throughout Wallace’s speech which is complimented by how he clearly shows that he is open to the idea of most things by using non-specific or non-aggressive…

It is my belief that David Foster Wallace’s speech, This Is Water, reflects the importance of education and human consciousness. This blurb relates to the phrase “ignorance is bliss”. The proverb about fish may be readily applicable to humans living in the twenty-first century. The uneducated are the fish that do not know what water is, and knowledge is the fish that asks them “How's the water?” Many people avoid concerning themselves with various subjects when they do not learn the details of…

In This is Water, written by David Foster Wallace, the first paragraph consists of a short story about two young fish and an older fish. As the older fish passes by, he asks, “Morning, boys, how’s the water?” After swimming for a bit, one of the younger fish turns to the other and asks, “What the hell is water?” The purpose of this short story is to point out the fact that we are not always fully aware of our surroundings. It is human nature to live in our own little bubble, to consider our own…

With everything happening in life, it is easy to focus on just ourselves and our own lives sometimes. However, it is important to not get caught up in the trivial aspects of life and lose sight of the bigger picture, or forget that “this is water.” In David Foster Wallace’s “This is Water” speech, he states that “[Life] is about simple awareness - awareness of what is so real and essential, so hidden in plain sight all around us, that we have to keep reminding ourselves, over and over. “This is…

David Foster Wallace and Herman Melville use word choice to establish their ethos as they demonstrate pictures of disorder, while law is not present. “This is Water,” by David Foster Wallace was a commencement speech given by Wallace at Kenyon College on May 21, 2005. It later became an essay that was first published in a book by “Little Brown and Company” in 2009. “Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street,” is a short story written by Herman Melville, that was first published in 1853.…

In “Consider The Lobster,” David Foster Wallace offers an interestingly ironic perspective on the intent of a creator when it comes to literature. As an author, Wallace has an insider’s perspective as to how audiences should be treating and accepting various forms of literature. On the surface, “Consider The Lobster” is an essay about the unimaginable treatment of lobsters in the Maine Lobster Festival which has an incredible lasting impact on the reader, leading them to feel an extreme amount…

Beady eyes, long bodies, and pinchy fingers are some attributes that make humans unapproachable. Unfortunately, they have also managed to selfishly devour a majority of the living species they come in contact with, including lobsters. David Foster Wallace wrote an essay titled, “Consider the Lobster,” to inform the public about the issues that has been happening between the lobster consumers, lobster defenders, and their feelings towards boiling alive the aquatic crustacean. Wallace is obviously…

Author, Christopher Hawke, wrote, “How shallow to presume war exists only within the physical world. Battles are waged for mind and soul, where things far from comprehension are confronted.” David Foster Wallace’s use of characterization throughout “Good People” paints a picture of a protagonist fighting several simultaneous inner battles for his own mind and soul. As Lane A. Dean weighs superficial predicaments like his pending relationship with Sheri and the fate of their unborn child, his…

Lobster, often named the king of seafood, is often seen as one of the most scrumptious seafood delights; yet poses some serious questions in the realm of morality. At least, that is what David Foster Wallace, the author of “Consider the Lobster”, proposes to his readers. He does this through his experience of the Maine Lobster Festival, or MLF, as well as examining the ways in which lobster is handled, prepared, and how people justify these practices. Knowing that the vast majority of lobster is…

In the article, Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace, he writes about the Maine Lobster Festival and the morality of boiling lobsters alive. He commences the article by explaining what the festival is and the nature of the crowds. The festival is about lobsters and not actually celebrating anything but is tradition caused by the importance of lobster trapping in Maine. It is a popular event in Maine and traffic heavy Wallace writes about crowds of people doing annoying actions. Wallace…