This is water.

E1008371

"This Is Water" is a widely acclaimed commencement speech by David Foster Wallace that reflects on mindfulness, empathy, and the challenges of adult life.

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This is water. canonical 1

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Predicate Object
instanceOf commencement speech
essay
audience Kenyon College graduating class of 2005
author David Foster Wallace NERFINISHED
countryOfFirstDelivery United States NERFINISHED
criticalReception widely acclaimed
date 2005-05-21
deliveredAt Kenyon College NERFINISHED
deliveredIn Gambier, Ohio NERFINISHED
form printed booklet
speech
genre commencement address
nonfiction
philosophical essay
hasAdaptation audio recording of the speech
video presentations with text and images
influenced discourse on the purpose of education
public discussions of mindfulness in daily life
language English
mainTheme awareness of everyday life
challenges of adult life
choice of how to think
compassion
default settings of the mind
education and thinking
empathy
meaning in ordinary life
mindfulness
self-centeredness
notableQuote The capital-T Truth is about life before death.
The really important kind of freedom involves attention and awareness and discipline.
This is water. NERFINISHED
You get to consciously decide what has meaning and what doesn’t.
pageCount 138
publicationYear 2009
publisher Little, Brown and Company
relatedWork A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again NERFINISHED
Consider the Lobster NERFINISHED
speaker David Foster Wallace NERFINISHED
subject consciousness
consumer culture
everyday routine
higher education
liberal arts education
mental habits
targetAudience college graduates
general readers
workByAuthor David Foster Wallace NERFINISHED

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This Is Water notableQuote This is water.