David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech was very inspirational and unlike any other I have heard. He was able to bring forth the realities of life and focus on what really matters after graduation. I find that most commencement speeches send graduates out with a feeling of invincibility and excitement, which makes them feel that they can tackle any obstacle in their way. But some students may not be ready for the road set before them. This is why I truly enjoyed listening to his speech, because Wallace was able to convey hard life facts and serious realities in a conversation tone, one which made people stop for a second and just take a breath. To realize that we as a society do need to become more aware of our surroundings and the people we come in contact with every day.
Furthermore, I found it interesting that he brought forth the idea of what an education really gives you. The fact that even though students will earn a degree in a certain field or major, the bigger picture is that the student was given the opportunity to challenge their thinking and alter the way they view the world. Consequently, I really enjoyed the section where he suggests that we go against our “natural default setting” and use that time we have stuck in traffic to really reflect instead of becoming angry and frustrated. I also enjoyed the visualization of the fish in the bowl of water and really related to that because sometimes it can feel like we are doing the same thing over and over and over again, but Wallace’s speech showed me that with each day I can do something different and think differently about the situation if I just choose to become more aware.
Concerning the video, I really enjoyed the music they incorporated into the film and found that it really complemented Wallace’s speech. Furthermore, the visual aids they utilized throughout the film with certain parts of the speech appearing on the screen was really great too.
