David Foster Wallace’s use of repetition in his short story “This is Water” is incredibly impactful and fully supports the theme of human unawareness throughout life. Wallace demonstrates human unawareness due to the hardwire of human’s natural default setting. Wallace’s word choice, illustrates this perspective on humans in different contexts throughout his writing. Wallace uses the single word think in his writing to employ human’s conscious effort to break their hardwired natural default setting of selfishness and unawareness. 

 Wallace references knowledge in terms of human’s lack of awareness in life and describes his underlying view on education. “A liberal arts education is not so much about filling you up with knowledge as it is about teaching you how to think” (Wallace). In this context, Wallace’s underlying view on education claims that human’s reaching simple awareness in life cannot be directly measured by the amount of knowledge learned in school from kindergarten to graduation, but from human’s conscious effort to alter their default setting and no longer see the world through the “lens of self”. Wallace is expressing how a liberal arts education has actually nothing to do with school knowledge. Education according to Wallace, has everything to do with consciously altering the viewpoint that the world is stuck around one’s constant routine that never changes, and that humans are defined by their human default setting. According to Wallace, being educated in this life is equivalent to being a “well adjusted” human being.

The word think in the context of education by Wallace specifically defines human’s need to pay attention. “It is extremely difficult to stay alert and attentive instead of getting hypnotized by the constant monologue inside your own head” (Wallace). Wallace supports the idea of humans “getting hypnotized” and falling into constant routine due to their natural default setting.  and the need to pay attention to yourself, your thoughts, and others around you to reach simple awareness. Wallace’s viewpoint on education, displays education as learning to pay attention to yourself and the world.  This idea is supported in this context by Wallace saying to break the hardwired constant cycle of life.

Wallace references human’s personal choice on how to follow their everyday life. “This isn’t really about the capacity to think, but rather about the choice of what to think about.” (Wallace). Generally, Wallace in context is claiming how humans have a choice of thought and whether or not to alter their hardwired natural default setting. According to Wallace, although human thought is not limited under the natural default setting, human thought is completely controlled by humans hardwired natural default setting. Humans often forget that thought is in fact a choice. Just because human natural default setting is hardwired into every human does not mean there is no choice in it. “Thinking this way tends to be so easy and automatic it doesn’t have to be a choice” (Wallace). Wallace supports this thought in this context, the author also claims how living under the natural default setting is “automatic and “easy”. Many humans do not realize that they are living their life genetically selfish, unaware, and in constant routine. “It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience” (Wallace). Wallace claims in this context referring to choice that humans must make the conscious choice to pay attention to others and escape the life of constant routine, where everything is revolved around one’s self.  According to Wallace, human choice of thought can be mistaken by thought itself. Wallace in this context reminds humans of the choice that is always open, even when life feels “automatic” or “easy” the choice is always open to going against the human natural default setting. 

More specifically, the usage of the word “think” in this context describes the choice as humans to evaluate or question the origin of our natural default setting and principles as humans. Wallace is employing the usage of the word “think” to challenge and encourage humans to go against the natural default setting as humans. Humans altering the default setting could eventually result in a different outlook on life that is no longer centered around one’s self circumstance. According to Wallace, this will result in self-awareness and thought for others in our everyday lives. Wallace is employing the usage of the word “think” also to explain the conscious effort that humans must make each and every day to relate and “think” about others. Wallace can now further his argument of our claim of how humans are biologically hardwired to live self-absorbed lives due to their natural default setting. We can now relate this usage of “think” to the overall theme of unawareness, by not making the conscious choice to fight against your natural default setting you will never be completely self-aware of others around you.

Wallace explains how our natural default setting is who we are by saying “We rarely think about this sort of natural, basic self-centeredness because it’s so socially repulsive.” Wallace in this context, is now identifying the human natural default setting as something that humans should feel shame of. Wallace identifies the hardwired, natural default setting as “socially repulsive” because humans are not aware that they are acting selfish in these situations. Generally, Wallace in this instance is claiming how humans natural default settings are so incredibly natural and unnoticed. “It’s the automatic, unconscious way that I experience the boring, frustrating, crowded parts of adult life” (Wallace). Wallace in this context is generally supporting the claim of how humans natural default settings are so incredibly natural and unnoticed. Wallace also is claiming in this context the boringness and routine of adult life. Once choosing to alter the default setting as humans, becoming more aware of the actions associated with the natural default setting would occur. Humans natural default setting as humans results in feeling stuck in selfishness and routine. Humans natural default setting of being selfish and having the world revolve around them is a natural and biological effect and we as humans do not even notice that we do it. 

More specifically, the usage of the word “think” in this context describes how unknowingly are actions are to ourselves and how unaware we are of our own morals as humans. Wallace is employing the usage of the word think to help humans realize the roots of humans flaws that are associated with the natural default setting as humans. Wallace can now further his argument of our claim that our natural default setting as humans results in being unnoticed, and is a direct cause of many behaviors by humans that relate to selfishness and unawareness. 

In conclusion, Wallace uses the word “think” a total number of fifteen times during his Commencement speech of “This Is Water”. Each time that Wallace used the overlooked and common word it had more meaning than I originally realized after first reading it. The instances of the word “think” do depend upon similarities with other passages in meaning, but the repetition of the word “think” is a very strong tool for Wallace’s argument to support the theme of human’s basic unawareness of ourselves. Wallace referenced knowledge, the human choice regarding humans and their natural default setting. Also, the idea of humans natural default setting becoming unnoticed by humans and being responsible for many selfish flawed behaviors and related them back to the word “think” in regards to the story this is water. 