Summary Of This Is Water By David Foster Walker

This is Water, was a commencement speech given by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College in 2005. Ever since this speech has been given it has become well known. Because of the length, it can be hard to read through the speech while trying to understand the whole idea of it. Wallace fills the speech with stories, examples, and vivid ideas while trying to convince these college graduates how to view life in a positive perspective. While this speech is packed full of ideas he manages to give it in a way outside of the norm for commencement speeches. Yet still gets all the information to the graduates and anyone else who listens to it.

Different societies around the world have different moral codes, but the importance of water is valued and respected everywhere. Most if not all societies agree with the principles of human dignity and equality for all people. Water is the basis for human survival, which can unite and create solidarity between civilizations. Instead, water is dividing civilizations, causing tension over the precious resource.

“Wade in the Water” is an excerpt from Alvin Ailey’s Revelations. His masterpiece Revelations was created in1960 and it reflects his experience and memories of growing up in Texas. “Wade in the Water” is a dance within Revelations that shows us a traditional baptism ceremony that takes place in a river. Alvin Ailey’s “Wade in the Water” shows us the hope that blacks had of someday being free. The baptism signifies the faith and hope of blacks being free from slavery and beginning a new life with freedom. For example, in (1:23-1:40) we see three male dancers with what look like tree branches “cleansing” the air from evil spirits before the baptism takes place. In (1:16-1:23) we see seven dancer taking two steps forward and two steps back with their hands together, like they were praying, and two other dancers with their hands up, as if they were asking god for help.

Water is also an essential part of Steinbeck’s connection of setting to familial conflict, with the lack of water sowing seeds of discontent in both families, though Steinbeck’s aforementioned theme of choice between good and evil defines what both families do with such misfortune. Lack of water on their property allows the Hamiltons to grow closer, with Samuel’s disappointment with his lack of success in farming being outweighed by his joy in his children, “Water would have made them comparatively rich...all in all it was a good firm-grounded family….Samuel was well pleased with the fruit of his loins,” (Steinbeck 507). By contrast, the drought of the land in Adam’s family is representative of the lack of parenting, how Adam is completely devoid of emotion once Cathy leaves, “Adam looked more gaunt than Samuel remembered. His eyes were dull, as though he did not use them much for seeing,” (655). This juxtaposition is further emphasized by Samuel’s biblical connection, as Samuel was a prophet, a man who could see into the future and thus see the value in raising children despite the difficulties while Adam cannot see beyond his own hardship. Furthermore, the lack of water enrichs the idea that if a family preserves through such difficulties, they will be greatly rewarded, “And the Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones, and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not

If one were to try to imagine a world without air, then it would certainly be very different than the world as humans know it. Since air is essential to the livelihood of most life on Earth, it could be considered an “important reality.” In David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech, “This is Water” to the 2005 graduating class of Kenyon College, Wallace states that “the most obvious, ubiquitous, important realities are often the ones that are the hardest to see and talk about.” (Wallace) Despite the necessity for air, most take its beautiful existence for granted. Wallace believes unawareness leads to unhappiness, and thus wants his audience to actively think about their surroundings. He

Have you ever came across a conflict between you and someone that was very close to you? In the memoir The Color of Water, by James McBride, McBride describes his understanding of and experiences with the cultures, races, religions, and family that surround him this eventually helps him to better understand himself. James McBride is an accomplished musician and author of the national Book Award-winning The Good Lord bird, the #1 best selling American classic The Color of Water, and the bestsellers Song Yet Sund and St.Anna, which was turned into a film by Spike Lee. McBride is a Distinguished Writer in Residence at New York University. The setting of The Color of Water occurs between the 1920s- 1990s. The character’s names in The Color of Water are James McBride, Ruth McBride Jordan, Andrew Dennis McBride, Hunter Jordan, Hudis Shilsky, Fishel Shilsky, Dee-Dee, Sam, Francis, Bubeh, Aunt Mary, Aunt Laura, Aunt Betsy, Peter, Helen McBride, Jack, Big Richard and Chicken Man. James’s experiences with racism in school, interactions with family, his research into his mother's past expose him to life outside of his comfort zone and demonstrate that you can be black, successful and loved outside of your race and his experiences and understanding of his own identity reveals his urge

Water is an essential quality in life that you need to live. Yet many people don't realize that how important it is in life until it could be taken away. John Thorson, a water rights and lawyer, says “ water links us to our neighbor in a way more profound and complex than any other.” It is a way people are connected around economically, socially, and environmentally. Some struggle to have clean water to drink and others can not find clean water at all.

Water is one of the basic foundational units of life. It is very easy to take it for granted; after all, it does make up three-quarters of the total global surface. It has no taste, no smell, and no color. When considered on the most basic level, it is not very exciting or stimulating at all. Its simplicity is infinitely remarkable, yet it is indispensable to the perpetuity of all life forms here on Earth. So why has it taken so long for us to open our eyes to both its splendor and fragility? We as a people seem to understand that existence is impossible without water, yet we continue to sabotage it both consciously and unconsciously.

Water is our most important food and it cannot be replaced. This statement is not a figure of speech, but a statement which has been raised up by many

Water happens to be the most fundamental element on earth. Life without water simply cannot be imagined. In the book, “The Big Thirst”, author Charles Fishman does an excellent job of presenting and reinforcing this fact while laying out the secret life and Turbulent Future of Water and the ways it could be managed in an excellent and extraordinary way. I must say that “The Big Thirst” was one of the most interesting books I’ve read in a while. As the review stated, when I first picked up the book for the class, it was indeed a “A deliciously fun book” yet so informative and knowledgeable at the same time. Fishman portrayed water through various word-play and real-life examples of its usage in the introductory chapters and the way I could

dense then in its liquid state and in the liquid form it is less dense

Oceans cover most of the Earth. They are essential for our environment since they produce more than half of the oxygen in the atmosphere. Without our vast sea, humankind would not be able to survive. In Annie John, written by Jamaica Kincaid water is demonstrated as a motif in literature showing the coming-of-age story of a young girl growing up in the Caribbean. The protagonist, Annie, grows learning how to properly balance the values of the colonized world and the native Caribbean culture, Obeah. Kincaid uses the motif of water as an empowerment to Annie’s growth by curing, nurturing, and transforming her.

Typically, water is an essential element that has kept us alive throughout centuries and has been around since our existence. It’s become a prioritized need humans strive for to survive on the daily. A cycle in which we need to be aware of not only because of its significant value, but also because of the situation its causing to people around the world. Our world is made up of 71 percent of water, but only 3 percent is considered natural fresh water. This makes up that 68 percent of water is mostly found in oceans or elsewhere. Water that we can’t use. Meaning we can’t consume the water into our bodies or use it in our daily needs such as

It is known that water is the most common and necessary thing in our daily life. There is a metaphor which says that people are made by water. However, currently, water has been gradually become a luxury thing. Obviously, sometimes you can divide people into different classes according to what kind of water they drink. That’s the core truth about the water pollution. Persons become more and more care about the quality of the water. Why water matters? Although it may seem like a no brainer, it turns out water matters a lot.

Fred Pearce’s When the Rivers Run Dry offers a look at his principles regarding water management and usage. He advocates the use of more efficient water use and conservation technologies, observing that widespread techniques such as drip-irrigation are inefficient and wasteful. Pearce is also against desalination- noting that it produces large amounts of toxic brine, is detrimental to the ecology of the ocean, and is the wrong approach to solving water shortage. Pearce argues against the misuse and mistreatment of