Tuesday, January 14, 2014
"Kenyon Commencement Speech"
In the "Kenyon Commencement Speech" delivered at Kenyon College, David Foster Wallace explains that receiving an education is more about knowing how to think rather than what to think. I think he chose to talk about this idea in his graduation speech because he's wanting to inform the students of the new obstacles and realizations that come along with graduation and starting out in the world. However, I felt the speech was a bit dragged out and not appropriate for graduation. Graduation is supposed to be a time filled with happiness, nervousness, and also excitement for the future and what's to come. This isn't exactly a common graduation speech. Instead it's filled with assumptions that we all have the same views on the world, which couldn't be more far from the truth. David Foster Wallace comments in his essay that he believes everyone believes they are the center of the universe, the most important person, leaving me with the impression that Wallace himself is arrogant, self-centered, and bitter. I think he presented himself in an extremely negative way. He fails to shine light on the fact that not everyone has the same beliefs and goals as he possesses. I think in a way it was degrading and some groups of people might feel excluded from his speech, including those who have committed suicide to which he spoke too lightly of. However, I did learn a few things from reading this speech. He uses an example of going to the grocery store after a long and frustrating day at work, but noticing the checkout lady behind the register is having a much worse day than you are. This showed that no matter how big we think our problems are, somebody else always has it worse. This emphasizes that we should put others happiness before our own, because you never know what someone is going through. With the valid points that Wallace made in his speech, I partially agree and partially disagree with him. I do agree that putting others before ourselves represents good character and education is the most important thing, but other points that he made such as the miserable day-to-day life routine set me back a bit because life is what you make it. You choose how your day goes.
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Macee, it's interesting how you perceived Wallace to be arrogant and self-centered while I saw him to be honest and critical. Then I realized, I must be very similar to him and you must have many differences!! I am often stuck in my own head failing to acknowledge that those around me may also be struggling. You said you found the speech to be inappropriate for graduation, what do you think could have improved this? Maybe hearing the speech in person, with the comic relief here and there, would make you think otherwise. I think when he wrote the speech he knew it would be untraditional. It was a risk that I can appreciate. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteI also thought your view of Wallace was rather interesting. Yes he made the comment about being the "center of the universe", but he also explained how he came to this conclusion. That it's our nature to think that everything revolves around our self and how each day is laid before us and everyone else is just part of our own experience. He wasn't being self-centered in saying this, but was trying to get the students to take a step back and think about how much we despise someone to be conceded, yet we all do it naturally. I agree with what your saying about the speech being a little dragged out, but it's the perfect speech for graduation! All this knowledge and different ways of thinking outside of the box are just what students need before setting off into the big scary world that so many of us fear. Wallace's speech was a break away from the usual BS that is said at similar occasions and was a refreshing source of being untraditional. Upon reading this speech, I found that what he seemed to be saying reminded me of a quote the Dalai Lama said when asked what surprised him most about humanity. The Dalai Lama replied to the question by saying, "Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never lived." Just some food for thought.
ReplyDeleteI perceived the speech in a completely different way and saw Wallace as quite the opposite of arrogant and self-centered. I agree that the speech is not a typical graduation speech, but I feel like Wallace had good intentions when giving it. He was not trying to scare the graduates or discourage them, but rather warn them about the reality of life. Graduation is a time of celebration, but it is also the beginning of a new chapter of your life, one that is completely different from the previous one, one that is most likely going to be more difficult and more complicated. I think too many commencement speeches give false hope. Many college graduates come out of college thinking life is going to be easier and that a job is just going to be handed to them and that things are going to be simple from there on out, but that is not the usual case. Wallace is trying to protect the graduates by changing their way of thinking before the real harshness of life hits and takes away from them. By sculpting the graduates’ thought processes into more positive ones, he is improving their life. I have known adults (some are even in my family) who are just like the people he describes getting off of work, going to the grocery store, and getting stuck in traffic on the way home. Their negative mindset consumes them and drains their energy completely and affects the people around them. Their life is just dragging by day by day and they have no real appreciation for life at all. I feel like if they had read or heard Wallace’s speech before beginning their adult lives that maybe they would have a different, more positive outlook and an overall greater appreciation for life, because Wallace is right, people do have it way worse and we should stop thinking about ourselves as much and start looking at the big picture more. How we think really does matter. It really does affect our everyday lives. At this point in our lives we really don’t know what to expect, and we’re still trying to figure out everything. I believe that this is a valuable speech and is given at a very appropriate and crucial time in life, because at the point of graduation, you still have time to change your life. You are very right; life is what you make it. The water is what you make it. And this is water, this is water.
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