The video, “This is Water” by Jermal Smith depicts 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 their thoughts on a day to day basis about the world around them. By looking at the written texts and speeds 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.  

Jermal Smith uses images as well as text throughout his video in order 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. The “have a nice day” signs are typically written on doors or said by cashiers but does not actually make your day one bit better. They are repeatedly seen throughout a person’s life and can be a symbol for a repetitive life of doing the same thing over and over again.  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 text seen at the beginning of the video is the words “Day in” and “Day out” flashed across the top of an office building. As these words are being shown the speaker is telling the college students that they do not know yet what the words “Day in” and “Day out” really mean. By putting this text on the top of an office building it evokes the idea of a typical working person going to an office everyday. This idea attracts to a large population as this is what a common future job may entail and they may have to go to the same office building, same floor, and same cubical literally “Day in” and “Day out”. 

Another element of text depicted in this video is the written use of specific words to illustrate what he is speaking about. For example, Stevens 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 a clip of cars moving along the highway is sped up and shown. Next, clips of an average day are flashed quickly across the screen. These same clips of this average day are shown again but in an even faster pace. All of images are played in a fast, upbeat, suspenseful way to give insight to the viewer of the constant stressful and draining days in their future. 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.

 As the speeds of the clips move quickly so do the sounds. The speed of the sounds also plays a large role in how the viewer feels while they are watching the video. As the cars in the beginning of the video are quickly speeding by on the screen the sounds of horns and beeping noises are played in the background. This is an irritating sound that people who can drive are familiar with and do not like to hear.  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. As the first scene of the grocery store is introduced the background noises of many items being put in the cart as well as the slow beeping sound of the cashier taking her time checking out each item, resembles the dreadfulness of the weekly grocery store trips these college students will soon be having to do.  The familiarity and awakening points Jermal Smith conveys in his video evokes the emotions of the viewers which makes this commencement speech so impactful.

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. As the video transitions from fast pace clips of a daily routine to a slow glimpse into the details of the grocery store, the emotions in the viewer will begin to shift. Slow changes of clips from one women with her kids pulling on her hair as she is trying to shuffle coupons to the next person who is talking on the cell phone in the grocery store, gives off the idea to actually slow your life down and focus on others, and not only yourself. The sound in this part of the video is slow background music which, again, gives off a calm feeling in the viewer. 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 the speaker is trying to get across. 

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 a 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. 
