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This Is Water: Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life Hardcover – April 14, 2009

by David Foster Wallace (Author)

194 customer reviews

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Only once did David Foster Wallace give a public talk on his views on life, during a commencement address given in 2005 at Kenyon College. The speech is reprinted for the first time in book form in THIS IS WATER. How does one keep from going through their comfortable, prosperous adult life unconsciously? How do we get ourselves out of the foreground of our thoughts and achieve compassion? The speech captures Wallace's electric intellect as well as his grace in attention to others. After his death, it became a treasured piece of writing reprinted in The Wall Street Journal and the London Times, commented on endlessly in blogs, and emailed from friend to friend.

Writing with his one-of-a-kind blend of causal humor, exacting intellect, and practical philosophy, David Foster Wallace probes the challenges of daily living and offers advice that renews us with every reading.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"David Foster Wallace's unbelievable graduation speech...will inspire you."―Daily Candy

"We read Wallace because he forces us to think. He makes us consider what's beneath us and around us--like water."―Alicia J. Rouverol, The Christian Science Monitor

"Think of it as The Last Lecture for intellectuals."―Time

"None of the cloudlessly sane and true things he had to say about life in 2005 are any less sane or true today...[This is Water] reminds us of [Wallace's] strength and goodness and decency--the parts of him the terrible master [the mind] could never defeat, and never will."―Tom Bissel, New York Times Book Review

"Striking...is [Wallace's] evocative insight and humor."―Mark Follman, Mother Jones

About the Author

David Foster Wallace was born in Ithaca, New York, in 1962 and raised in Illinois, where he was a regionally ranked junior tennis player. He received bachelor of arts degrees in philosophy and English from Amherst College and wrote what would become his first novel, The Broom of the System, as his senior English thesis. He received a masters of fine arts from University of Arizona in 1987 and briefly pursued graduate work in philosophy at Harvard University. His second novel, Infinite Jest, was published in 1996. Wallace taught creative writing at Emerson College, Illinois State University, and Pomona College, and published the story collections Girl with Curious Hair, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, Oblivion, the essay collections A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, and Consider the Lobster. He was awarded the MacArthur Fellowship, a Lannan Literary Award, and a Whiting Writers' Award, and was appointed to the Usage Panel for The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. He died in 2008. His last novel, The Pale King, was published in 2011.

Product details

Hardcover: 137 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (April 14, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0316068225
ISBN-13: 978-0316068222
Product Dimensions: 4.8 x 0.8 x 6.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 194 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #28 in Books > Education & Teaching > Schools & Teaching > Education Theory > Philosophy & Social Aspects
- #60 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Consciousness & Thought
- #101 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Ethics & Morality

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194 customer reviews

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I like it. The only problem is the author's translation ...

April 24, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I like it. The only problem is the author's translation of the Commencement Speech. In other words, he "substitutes" words in which David Foster Wallace did not "truly state" in the actual speech which changes the original commencement speech into a partially an interpreted commencement speech but most of it - I hope - stays true to the commencement speech, "verbatim". One example of this is on pg. 131 which states,"It is about the real value of a real education, which has nothing to do with "grades or degrees" - this is written in this text, this book, but in the actual commencement speech at the instance of him speaking, he states, "it is about the real value of a real education, which has almost nothing to do with knowledge, . . .". The text itself in this particular book doesn't state "verbatim" of the actual commencement speech at that particular time and place that took place in 2005. Compare the recorded speech and the actual text of this book - you might see small differences which becomes a slightly, partially, and interpreted work and not a "verbatim" text with the "actual commencement speech".

31 people found this helpful

Comment

Lee Underwood — Poet: Diamondfire

One of Wallace's masterpieces

July 2, 2016

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

David Foster Wallace wrote numerous books, some brilliant, receiving well-deserved praise. "This is Water" is not fiction. It is a speech he gave to a college graduating class. Only one brilliant paragraph per page, sometimes only a phrase, laid out rather like a poem, and reading almost like an incredible waterfall of wisdom. Five stars. One of those rare gems. Can be read in one sitting, and is immensely nourishing, uplifting, and full of insight, humor, and rich emotion.

12 people found this helpful

Comment

I somehow missed this

May 21, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

It's ironic that I have never heard of David Foster Wallace before today and sort of highlights my own thought process. Mr. Wallace has more than nailed how we humans stumble our way through life without giving much thought at all about what to think. A meaningful an insightful read.

8 people found this helpful

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The commencement bspeech I wish I received

November 7, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Having graduated from a liberal arts university 19 years ago, I can say the advice in this speech is dead-on based on my life experiences since then. Very relatable life advice and takes a half hour or less to read!

4 people found this helpful

Comment

... commencement speech really pulls my heartstrings and is a great reminder to be patient and kind to everyone I ...

December 4, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This commencement speech really pulls my heartstrings and is a great reminder to be patient and kind to everyone I encounter in this life.
Three stars because the layout is WEIRD, it definitely takes away some of the power of the words because each page has only a few sentences and reads very choppy.

One person found this helpful

Comment

A great speech, but do not buy the Kindle version

November 9, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Do not buy the Kindle version. It is a great speech, but in the Kindle version the formatting is awful. There are only a few lines or words on most pages, so you have to continually keep turning pages for what should be an easy read. Also, the Kindle version is way overpriced. It is the transcript of a 23-minute commencement address, for gosh sake, but it costs the same as most 200-page novels. You can read the text online or listen to the full speech on YouTube. I could kick myself for wasting $9.99 on it.

4 people found this helpful

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An awesome and deeply meaningfulCommencement Speech

April 13, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I would recommend this book to anyone learning to define who they are and what they value. Like much of David Foster Wallace's writing, it is nitty gritty real life, honest, inspirational and nuanced prose unique to him. Too soon he left us.

3 people found this helpful

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September 11, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I saw the short film based on this book and HAD to purchase the book itself. I love it. It is sad that David Foster Wallace killed himself because he was quite the profound writer. The book is short, it is a very quick read (like 45 minutes to read) but if you really soak it in, it will change your thinking forever. Just keep reading it - over and over...

6 people found this helpful

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