
The commencement speech given to Kenyon’s graduating class of 2005 was presented by David Foster Wallace.  He was an author that had written many published novels, essays, and short stories in his writing career.  It can be said that the speech he delivered at the graduation ceremony was his suicide note. That is because three years after this speech David Foster Wallace committed suicide and his depressive state was apparent in this speech three years prior to his death.  

The argument that David Foster Wallace gives about a higher education making one more open-minded and a better thinker, which makes the day to day life more bearable.  The argument is true because higher education creates experiences one can learn from to become a better thinker and become less oblivious to the world around them.  Also, through higher education one is better equipped to adjust themselves into the real world and become a functioning citizen of society.  David Foster Wallace proves this argument through the use of his tone he was able to make a meaningful impact on the audience.  Also, through the use of his tone Wallace showed the truthfulness of his speech and shows the extent to which he actually cares about the people who he is presenting this speech to.  Wallace adds to the argument that higher education makes the students better thinkers of the world and more conscious to their surroundings.    Although Wallace states he does not want to use the traditional clichés he states that while they have been said too much and may not be as meaningful as they once were, but these clichés still are meaningful to an extent.

Wallace’s tone throughout the speech ranging from informal to the formal and using vulgar language in order to get his message across.  The majority of topic sentences for each paragraph seemed to have the informal tone, for example “Here’s another didactic little story.” (Paragraph 4, line 1).  This quote shows the informal tone that Wallace usually uses at the beginning of a new paragraph.  The influence this has on the speech is important because it makes it a more personable.  It could even be considered a conversation between Wallace and the students without the students reply.  It is as if he is speaking to each and every one of the graduating students individually and explaining what life will be like post-graduation.  Wallace was able to do this through the use of his tone which was soft and at times comical.  The speech’s tone drastically changed to more of a harsh reality of what a day to day life will be like.  The tone of the speech helped to support the argument that higher education makes one more open-minded and a better thinker to make more life bearable.  

The tone of the speech aided drawing in readers and the audience because of the uniqueness of the speech and the tone helped to support the message.  It helped to draw in the audience and readers through the casual manner that he introduced the speech and it enticed the readers and listeners.  As a young adult male my attention can be taken through unexpected surprises and anything childish.  The use of vulgar language was a surprise and made the speech enticing and wanting to read more.

Through the use of the common stories that Wallace was able to deliver the message that higher education makes one a better thinker and more open-minded.  Such as the story about the fish not knowing what water is, when the older fish asked how the water was.  This connects to the title, “This Is Water”, by saying that life is right in front of us, but we do not even notice what surrounds us.  Wallace shows that through having a higher education it enables one to be more aware of their surroundings.  What he means when he says this is that you are not the center of the world because everyone views everything from their two eyes and it may be a different interpretation from the next person.  It just depends on the person, their knowledge, and education which all adds up to their perspective and how one will look at an event that they had just encountered.  Wallace argues that through having a higher education one will be more open to ideas outside their own perspective.  By being open to others’ ideas and being a better thinker it enables one to be a better person in general and a better person in society.

Clichés are used due to the commonness of the statement and has a universal meaning that everyone is able to understand.  Clichés are over used and lose meaning over time.  Wallace explicitly states that he does not want to use them in his speech, but uses them in order to get his message across successfully.  Wallace uses the cliché, “your education really IS the job of a lifetime.” (Paragraph 33, line 3), at the end of the speech to show that higher education sets you up for life.  It also leaves one with the ability to be a more of a thinking person and a less assuming person.  

In conclusion, Wallace is able to successfully deliver his message that a higher education enables people to be better thinkers and to be more consciously open to one’s own surroundings.  David Foster Wallace was able to deliver this message through the use of his tone to entice people to the speech and to make apparent the message he was informing the audience about.  Through the use of the common relatable stories it enabled Wallace to swiftly transition the message into different situations that everyone can relate to making the speech even more meaningful.  Wallace stated many times that he did not want the speech to be filled with clichés, although he did use clichés because of their universal meanings and also due to the versatility of the statements. 