The video, “This is Water” by Jermal Smith captures David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech to the 2005 Kenyon graduating class. The way he captures the video allows viewers to see Wallace’s speech from a different perspective. David Foster Wallace did not give the typical commencement speech about how your college degree will help you thrive in the workplace. Rather he spoke to these students on how to survive in their daily life and make it as enjoyable as possible by controlling your thoughts on a day to day basis about the world around you. By looking at the written texts, speed, and symbols in the video, we can see that Jermal Smith is showing the generation of “soon to be adults” how to overcome the negative thoughts that may take over their mind in their adulthood life.  

Author David Foster Wallace grew up battling depression. Through the difficulties of this illness he struggled with smoking and drinking to combat his problems. Besides these issues he was a well-known and intellectual student. You can see through the way he wrote this commencement speech that depression and the way he thinks on a day to day basis affected his life and the thoughts that consumed him. This speech and the video were intended for graduates who are about to take on the next step of their life. They are now adults about to begin a routine that will most likely last a lifetime. As this can come off as a depressing thought, Wallace does not try to hide the miseries of life, yet he gives these students advice on how to cope with their emotions and thoughts to make adulthood life more bearable. You can clearly hear this message when listening to his speech, although when you add the visual elements from Smith’s video the viewer is able to perceive an even deeper thinking about it. 

In the video created by Jermal Smith, depicting Wallace’s “This is Water” speech, he uses images as well as text to give the viewer a way of looking deeper into the argument. The use of text throughout the video has a large impact on the emotions evoked through the viewer. Texts such as “have a nice day” written on the grocery store door is a theme throughout the video. He talks about how saying, “have a nice day”, is written on doors or said by the cashier but doesn't make your day one bit better. By reading this sign it helps the viewer to actually remember what it is like to see this in the local grocery store and stimulates the emotions they feel just as Wallace does. 

Another element of text depicted in this video is the written use of specific words to illustrate what he is speaking about. For example, he is talking about how hard it is to go to the grocery store and your struggles of trying to get in and out quickly. While he is saying these thoughts, words such as “respectful” and “considerate” are captured on the walls in the background. He uses these specific words to show that the viewer has to put in an effort to behave and think this way as they are shopping. Shortly after he speaks about how you do this certain routine day in and day out, shown in the background again, on the food item signs are the months of the year and days of the week. This use of text gives the viewer the feeling of this going on for an excessive amount of time. This clip is portraying this draining and depressing thought for students who have just experienced a thrilling time in college and now have to look forward to this for the rest of their lives. One final element Smith uses with text in the video is, the points that he wants to get across and wants the viewer to comprehend, pop up quickly across the screen in bold white letters. He does this many times because not only does he want the viewer to be hearing his strong argument but he also wants them to read it so it is fully comprehended.

The overall design of the video is captured in a perfect way to feel the emotions David Foster Wallace wants the viewer to feel. A big element which affects the viewer's feelings is the speed of the clips throughout the video. In the beginning of the video the music and images are played in a fast, upbeat, suspenseful way. He is explaining how the days are somewhat stressful and draining so he uses stressful sounds and quick speeds to evoke this sort of feeling in the viewer. As he begins going through a typical day he uses sound effects that an average person would recognize such as, a phone alarm, shower and clicking of the computer mouse. This allows the viewer to feel familiar with the day he is setting forth. Finally, as the tone of the video shifts into a sense of what you should aim to think about throughout your day the sounds and images begin to slow down and become more serious and uplifting. This clear shift in the video slows down and strikes an emotional appeal to the viewer that will allow them to think and listen to the points he is trying to get across. 

Throughout the whole video emotions are evoked within the viewer. This topic of a daily routine throughout an adult life is something that can be easily connected with. Most everyone has felt at some point in their life stressed out and that their time is more important than everyone else's. This allows people to think negative thoughts and make their daily miserable routines of life even worse. The way this video is put forth with the images and scenarios that he describes can relate to most everyone. Everyone has to go to the busy grocery store or drive in rush hour traffic at some point in their lives, right? The familiarity and awakening points Jermal Smith conveys in his video evokes the emotions of the viewers which makes this commencement speech so impactful.

As these graduates of the 2005 Kenyon Class sit and listen to David Wallace's speech they became aware of the miseries that can overtake your mind in the years of adulthood. The audience for this video is aimed for students as well about to start off their adult life and are able to see his speech in different way. If this video was directed to people of older age they would already know how the negative emotions, as you are having a bad morning or afternoon, can take over your mind and body. As this is aimed for viewers of “soon to be adults” they have not yet experienced these emotions and days which is why this is so impactful for these viewers. As David Foster Wallace ended up committing suicide three years after he gave this speech it makes his message that much more powerful. If you do not learn how to overcome the negative thoughts in your head to make your daily life more bearable it could take over the life you have in front of you. 
