This Is Water: The Original David Foster Wallace Recording Audiobook By David Foster Wallace cover art

This Is Water: The Original David Foster Wallace Recording

Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life

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This Is Water: The Original David Foster Wallace Recording

By: David Foster Wallace
Narrated by: David Foster Wallace
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In this rare peak into the personal life of the author of numerous bestselling novels, gain an understanding of David Foster Wallace and how he became the man that he was.
Only once did David Foster Wallace give a public talk on his views on life, during a commencement address given in 2005 at Kenyon College. The speech is reprinted for the first time in book form in This is Water. How does one keep from going through their comfortable, prosperous adult life unconsciously? How do we get ourselves out of the foreground of our thoughts and achieve compassion? The speech captures Wallace's electric intellect as well as his grace in attention to others. After his death, it became a treasured piece of writing reprinted in The Wall Street Journal and the London Times, commented on endlessly in blogs, and emailed from friend to friend.

Writing with his one-of-a-kind blend of causal humor, exacting intellect, and practical philosophy, David Foster Wallace probes the challenges of daily living and offers advice that renews us with every reading. Consciousness & Thought Education Ethics & Morality Personal Development Personal Success Philosophy Witty Inspiring Funny

Critic reviews

"David Foster Wallace's unbelievable graduation speech...will inspire you."—Daily Candy
"We read Wallace because he forces us to think. He makes us consider what's beneath us and around us--like water."—Alicia J. Rouverol, The Christian Science Monitor
"Think of it as The Last Lecture for intellectuals."—Time
"None of the cloudlessly sane and true things he had to say about life in 2005 are any less sane or true today...[This is Water] reminds us of [Wallace's] strength and goodness and decency--the parts of him the terrible master [the mind] could never defeat, and never will."—Tom Bissel, New York Times Book Review
"Striking...is [Wallace's] evocative insight and humor."—Mark Follman, Mother Jones
Profound Insights • Thought-provoking Message • Author's Authentic Voice • Philosophical Wisdom • Practical Life Advice

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living with Conscientious awareness of our surroundings and the people in our daily lives and choosing how we respond to it all. The eternal capital T truth is that man must learn how to endure his own internal monolog if he ever wishes to find harmony.

taoism from the tortured modern American soul.

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A fascinating, thought-provoking commencement address--a must-listen for those in education. The insights from his talk have stayed with me since first hearing it years ago.

#thought-provoking #greatforeducators #tagsgiving #sweepstakes

Thought-provoking

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Or he got it. But in the end keeping the beauty and mystery at the forefront was too difficult a task. I wish there was a world where he could have lived

He gets it

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I loved this, great sense of awareness and metaphor! I loved this short read, so much covered in such a little time

Review of This is Water. Amazing short story of consciousness awareness and open mindedness. I really enjoyed it

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How often I've tried to articulate this, but not nearly so well. I should listen to this every week.

Yes!

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I've heard many graduation and commencement speeches in the academic careers of myself and my family. I would count only two as worthwhile, and this is one of them. It is simple, based in honesty, but without moral lecturing, and so truthful that it felt like David Foster Wallace was talking to me. I listened to this from Audible, and I think that hearing DFW give the speech made it even more powerful for me. But I also think that it's important enough to hear or read however you can, so google the pdf transcript or listen to it on youtube. Don't just revert to your default setting; choose to look differently, be aware, and pay attention. This one is staying on my ipod for multiple relistens, especially on those days when I'm lazy and have forgotten that "this is water".

Be aware and pay attention

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I was hesitant to spend a credit for a 24 minute speech but I am so glad I got it. I have heard lines quoted from this speech before and can see why. Its packed with many pearls that I have listened to it several times already and am blown away each time.

24 Minutes of Brilliance

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This quiet, unassuming speech packs a lot of Truth in its 20-minute delivery by the author, David Foster Wallace. It is a meditation that I have come back to many times.

Powerful

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Great speech, great use of language, zooming between the mundane and the metaphysical . Worth relistening to this every now and again.

Wish dfw followed his own advice and observations

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I love this and I listen to it regularly. A simply amazing speech with an incredible point of view on life and our options of how and what to think about. I cannot recommend this speech enough. The world would be a better place if everyone took this speech to heart.

AMAZING AND POWERFUL. LISTEN, LEARN, REPEAT

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