Within the last couple of decades, a common trend in graduation commencement speeches is that they tend to be motivational. While almost all commencement speeches follow this pattern there still remains a handful that do not. Although these particular speeches that aren’t necessarily inspirational stand out from the norm, they still contain the ability to be informative and educational. While many college graduates want to hear something funny or inspirational as they only get to experience college graduation once and it will be something they wont forget, what they need to hear is of greater importance and that is that will help guide them going forward in life. In the commencement speech “This is Water,” performed by David Foster Wallace, the overall message of the speech is intended to be a warning rather than provide a inspirational or motivational connotation. 

Many people believe that the speaker provides a motivational approach towards his speech that creates a newly coveted essence of what life after college should look like. However, David Foster Wallace actually prompted the crowd to simultaneously let out an inaudible gasp of despair, leaving these students fidgeting in an uptight manner anxious to hear each and every word. As he dives deeper into his speech, Wallace makes a significantly important statement; “Please don’t worry that I’m getting ready to lecture you about compassion or other directedness or all the so-called virtues. This is not a matter of virtue” (The Carolina Reader xii). The audience may feel that this direct statement refers to the idea that Wallace is here to entertain and inspire rather than educate. While he states that he isn’t going to ramble on about virtues, he actually incorporates the idea of virtues into the entire speech once it is read between the lines. He makes statements throughout the commencement speech about the everyday citizens strolling through the grocery store after an uneventful day in the office and just how their attitudes and decisions impact their outlook on life. While David Foster Wallace undoubtedly deceived the audience into thinking his speech would be a happy, lighthearted announcement, which is irrefutable.

David Foster Wallace emphasizes the fact that whatever you worship in life will impact you everyday. He believes that unless your spend your time worshipping a god or spiritual-type thing you will be worshipping the wrong thing. Many people worship money or materialistic items when those ultimately provide no positive impact on their attitude, beliefs, and actions as they go about their day through their repetitive job. As he goes on to talk about falling into the trap of worshipping things that aren’t worth doing he says, “But the insidious thing about these forms of worship is not that they’re evil or sinful, it’s that they’re unconscious. They are default settings” (The Carolina Reader xvi). Everybody worships something and it doesn’t always has to be a religious related person or thing. What Wallace creates is a realization for the audience that whatever they are worshipping is most likely not giving them an edge when it comes to their new journey in the real world after college. The speaker continues to warn while dismissing any assumptions of inspirational phrases with his input on worshipping.

As Wallace’s lecture to the audience continues, he makes yet another warning. In this situation he states, “There happen to be whole, large parts of adult American life that nobody talks about in commencement speeches. One such part involves boredom, routine, and petty frustration” (Carolina Reader xiii). It can be inferred that David Foster Wallace believes that the typical bland graduation speech lets the audience know what they need to hear in order to succeed in the next few years but not in the long run. He cherishes the idea of digging deeper into the context and pondering what life’s obstacles will consist of in reality as a replacement for viewing life through a window that shows the average American life. David Foster Wallace’s graduation commencement speech compared to the average commencement speech at a college in the United States is like comparing a window to a mirror. The average college commencement speech is identical to a window in that it doesn’t allow you to see yourself but only expectations through inspiring stories and experiences that other people or celebrities such as the ones giving the speech have gone through. On the other hand, David’s commencement speech resembles a mirror in that it provides an opportunity to reflect on the reality of life after college and the struggles and hardship that are guaranteed to come along with it. While the window approach to a commencement speech isn’t necessarily an immoral idea, it creates an unrealistic expectation for success and happiness. David Foster Wallace warns the student crowd about their future problems and he isn’t afraid to do so as he willingly and consciously admits that his speech may not be as entertaining or ecstatic as most other speeches tend to be.

David Foster Wallace undoubtedly issues a sense of warning to the students graduating from Kenyon College through his graduation commencement speech. In doing so these students receive one of the greatest commencement speeches of all time as it has been rated amongst the best. Just as all their college classes most likely did, this speech forces them to think deeper and question their belief of what their college education is really worth. Is it of monetary value or is it a prized possession used to gain greater access in the real world to opportunities they might not have had otherwise. There is no right or wrong answer which is why Wallace left it for the class of 2005 graduates to decide. 