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4.2: This is Water – David Foster Wallace

  • Page ID
    152021
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    “This, I submit, is the freedom of a real education, of learning how to be well-adjusted. You get to consciously decide what has meaning and what doesn’t. You get to decide what to worship.

    Because here’s something else that’s weird but true: in the day-to-day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.”

    In David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech at Kenyon College, he says that the real purpose of education isn’t to instill us with the capacity to think—something we all possess—but rather, to help us maintain constant awareness that we have the choice of what to think about. Have you ever thought about yourself as having a choice over what you think about? Or, do you feel that you do not have a choice in what to think about or pay attention to?

    Before Reading

    Before reading Wallace’s full speech, note your thoughts in response to these questions below:

    Questions 1 & 2 are activating your background knowledge and question 3 is your purpose for reading. David Foster Wallace" by Steve Rhodes is marked with CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

    1. In your opinion, what does it mean to “worship” (See “Worship Inquiry” Activity) and do you agree with the claim that “everybody worships” something?"
    1. Reflect on your own life experiences - where does your sense of honor, worthiness, and dignity come from?
    1. As you read and listen to Wallace’s speech, make note of the ideas that you find most powerful and try to identify his main points:
    After Reading

    After reading Wallace’s speech, take some time to reflect on the questions and quotes below. We also encourage you to discuss your thoughts with classmates or others.

    1. Look back at your pre-reading answer to the question “Do you agree with the claim that “everybody worships” something?” After reading Wallace’s speech, did your answer to this question change? Why or why not?
    1. In this speech, Wallace says, “And the so-called real world will not discourage you from operating on your default settings, because the so-called real world of men and money and power hums merrily along in a pool of fear and anger and frustration and craving and worship of self.”

    Why do you think that the “real world” won’t discourage us from adhering to these default settings? Why does this make the acts of noticing and questioning even more essential? Can you think of any recent examples from your own life when your acts of noticing and questioning seemed to be discouraged?

    1. In his speech, Wallace says, “There are all different kinds of freedom, and the kind that is most precious you will not hear much talk about much in the great outside world of wanting and achieving…. The really important kind of freedom involves attention and awareness and discipline, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them over and over in myriad petty, unsexy ways every day.” Do you agree that our society encourages us to focus on “wanting and achieving”? How does this mindset influence the things we think about and the way we create meaning from our experiences? What might this mindset lead us to overlook?
    1. What are you curious to learn or think more about after reading Wallace’s speech?

    4.2: This is Water – David Foster Wallace is shared under a CC BY-NC license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.