8 David Foster Wallace Essays You Can Read Online Right Now (2024)

If you've talked to me for more than five minutes, you probably know that I'm a huge fan of author and essayist David Foster Wallace. In my opinion, he's one of the most fascinating writers and thinkers that has ever lived, and he possessed an almost supernatural ability to articulate the human experience.

Listen, you don't have to be a pretentious white dude to fall for DFW. I know that stigma is out there, but it's just not true. David Foster Wallace's writing will appeal to anyone who likes to think deeply about the human experience. He really likes to dig into the meat of a moment — from describing state fair roller coaster rides to examining the mind of a detoxing addict. His explorations of the human consciousness are incredibly astute, and I've always felt as thought DFW was actually mapping out my own consciousness.

Contrary to what some may think, the way to become a DFW fan is not to immediately read Infinite Jest . I love Infinite Jest. It's one of my favorite books of all-time. But it is also over 1,000 pages long and extremely difficult to read. It took me seven months to read it for the first time. That's a lot to ask of yourself as a reader.

My recommendation is to start with David Foster Wallace's essays. They are pure gold. I discovered DFW when I was in college, and I would spend hours skiving off my homework to read anything I could get my hands on. Most of what I read I got for free on the Internet.

So, here's your guide to David Foster Wallace on the web. Once you've blown through these, pick up a copy of Consider the Lobster or A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again .

1. "This is Water" Commencement Speech

Technically this is a speech, but it will seriously revolutionize the way you think about the world and how you interact with it. You can listen to Wallace deliver it at Kenyon College, or you can read this transcript. Or, hey, do both.

2. "Consider the Lobster"

This is a classic. When he goes to the Maine Lobster Festival to do a report for Gourmet, DFW ends up taking his readers along for a deep, cerebral ride. Asking questions like "Do lobsters feel pain?" Wallace turns the whole celebration into a profound breakdown on the meaning of consciousness. (Don't forget to read the footnotes!)

2. "Ticket to the Fair"

Another episode of Wallace turning journalism into something more. Harper's sent DFW to report on the state fair, and he emerged with this masterpiece. The Harper's subtitle says it all: "Wherein our reporter gorges himself on corn dogs, gapes at terrifying rides, savors the odor of pigs, exchanges unpleasantries with tattooed carnies, and admires the loveliness of cows."

3. "Federer as Religious Experience"

DFW was obviously obsessed with tennis, but you don't have to like or know anything about the sport to be drawn in by his writing. In this essay, originally published in the sports section of The New York Times, Wallace delivers a profile on Roger Federer that soon turns into a discussion of beauty with regard to athleticism. It's hypnotizing to read.

4. "Shipping Out: On the (nearly lethal) comforts of a luxury cruise"

Later published as "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again" in the collection of the same name, this essay is the result of Harper's sending Wallace on a luxury cruise. Wallace describes how the cruise sends him into a depressive spiral, detailing the oddities that make up the strange atmosphere of an environment designed for ultimate "fun."

5. "E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction"

This is definitely in the running for my favorite DFW essay. (It's so hard to choose.) Fiction writers! Television! Voyeurism! Loneliness! Basically everything I love comes together in this piece as Wallace dives into a deep exploration of how humans find ways to look at each other. Though it's a little long, it's endlessly fascinating.

6. "String Theory"

"You are invited to try to imagine what it would be like to be among the hundred best in the world at something. At anything. I have tried to imagine; it's hard."

Originally published in Esquire, this article takes you deep into the intricate world of professional tennis. Wallace uses tennis (and specifically tennis player Michael Joyce) as a vehicle to explore the ideas of success, identity, and what it means to be a professional athlete.

7. "9/11: The View from the Midwest"

Written in the days following 9/11, this article details DFW and his community's struggle to come to terms with the attack.

8. "Tense Present: Democracy, English, and the Wars Over Usage"

If you're a language nerd like me, you'll really dig this one. A self-proclaimed "snoot" about grammar, Wallace dives into the world of dictionaries, exploring all of the implications of how language is used, how we understand and define grammar, and how the "Democratic Spirit" fits into the tumultuous realms of English.

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8 David Foster Wallace Essays You Can Read Online Right Now (2024)

FAQs

What is the main idea of Wallace's essay? ›

It's about being able to choose what we pay attention to and how we interpret the world. Wallace acknowledges that this kind of awareness and choice is difficult and requires constant effort. He warns that the 'real world' will constantly challenge our ability to see beyond our own needs and desires.

What was David Foster Wallace speech about? ›

The speech was made into a thin book titled This Is Water: Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life. Wallace hits on our need to manage rather than remove our core hard-wired human instincts.

Who is David Foster Wallace summary? ›

David Foster Wallace (born February 21, 1962, Ithaca, New York, U.S.—died September 12, 2008, Claremont, California) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and essayist whose dense works provide a dark, often satirical analysis of American culture.

What was David Foster Wallace's famous quote? ›

Everybody is identical in their secret unspoken belief that way deep down they are different from everyone else.

What does David Foster Wallace argue? ›

But, Foster Wallace argues, if we choose “to do the work of somehow altering or getting free of my natural, hard-wired default setting” of selfishness, we can find not only meaning in life but also connection to others by “being able truly to care about other people.”

What was Wallace's conclusion? ›

Wallace came to much the same conclusion that Darwin published in the Origin of Species: biogeography was simply a record of inheritance. As species colonized new habitats and their old ranges were divided by mountain ranges or other barriers, they took on the distributions they have today.

What does David Foster Wallace believe in? ›

In 2005 the writer and professor David Foster Wallace gave a remarkable speech at Kenyon college, where Wallace, not a Christian, said “There is actually no such thing as atheism.” He went on to explain: There is no such thing as not worshiping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.

What is David Foster Wallace philosophy? ›

For his honors thesis in philosophy, Wallace continued to chase the click, writing a highly specialized, 76-page work on the metaphysical doctrine of fatalism (which holds, quite radically, that human actions and decisions have no influence on the future).

What is David Foster Wallace's writing style? ›

His writing style, often described as maximalist, revels in the complexity of thought and emotion, challenging readers to navigate through dense, layered text. Wallace's sentences themselves are a playground of linguistic experimentation.

How smart was David Foster Wallace? ›

His intelligence was vast, and his writing let you all the way into it. His verbal talent was on a par with James Joyce's. But he was a Joyce for our time. His best prose was slangy, hyper-modern, tech-savvy, and laugh-out-loud funny.

Is David Foster Wallace persuasive? ›

Wallace's use of rhetorical strategies really gets the reader thinking, and thoroughly captures the argument of many vegetarians against the consumption of animals. Wallace captures the use of pathos in his essay and uses it in a way that is incredibly convincing to the reader.

What was David Foster Wallace's diagnosis? ›

Death. Wallace's father said that David had suffered from major depressive disorder for more than 20 years and that antidepressant medication had allowed him to be productive.

What did David Foster Wallace read? ›

The University of Texas at Austin has revealed which books David Foster Wallace possessed.
  • Extravagances. Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League, Cleo Birdwell. ...
  • Older brothers. Against Interpretation and Other Essays, Sontag, Susan. ...
  • Dictionaries. ...
  • Classics. ...
  • Research.

What is good people by David Foster Wallace? ›

In his 2007 short story “Good People,” the late novelist David Foster Wallace shows us the tormented conscience of a Christian whose fidelity to the Gospel is compromised by his reverence for autonomy.

What is the main idea of the this is water speech? ›

It suggests that the overall purpose of higher education is to learn to consciously choose how to perceive others, think about meaning, and act appropriately in everyday life. Wallace argues that the true freedom acquired through education is the ability to be fully conscious and sympathetic.

What was Wallace's idea? ›

Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913) was a man of many talents - an explorer, collector, naturalist, geographer, anthropologist and political commentator. Most famously, he had the revolutionary idea of evolution by natural selection entirely independently of Charles Darwin.

What is the main importance of the Wallace Line discovery? ›

His legacy is the Wallace Line, a near-magical boundary which doesn't simply explain where animals live today but provides a key to their evolution. His idea has had a profound effect on all biological thinking to the present day. The region of Wallace's Line is one of the most geologically complex zones known.

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