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| David Foster Wallace |
Having been friends with Mary Rose Kennedy since the beginning of my freshman year, I was pretty familiar with author David Foster Wallace coming into the “This Is Water” seminar, named after one of his most famous works. None of Mary’s friends can miss the exuberance and affection she has for DFW’s writing and the man himself. I’m sure we can all think of an author whose writing has touched our lives on a deeper level than anything else we’ve read; a figure to whom we feel as close as a good friend, whom we admire more than our greatest mentor.
In Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying, the main character kisses the faces of authors on the backs of books when finished with them. This deep affection for an author is one of the beauties of reading; it is a deeply personal experience, and you feel as though the writer is pouring out the secrets of his soul to you and only you. This experience is especially present in reading a work by DFW, an exceptionally honest, candid and conversational writer.
The assigned readings were “This Is Water,” DFW’s famous commencement speech, and selections from The Pale King and Infinite Jest. While the discussion was one of the best we’ve had all semester, my favorite parts of the seminar were learning about DFW’s life and watching clips of interviews with him. I have a distinct memory in my head of seeing a close-up of his face on the projector screen—long brown hair with a bandana tied around his forehead, an unkempt scruffy beard, wearing glasses and a thoughtful expression. I remember Mary Rose telling us that he was from Illinois and, having grown up in the Midwest, had many of the same childhood experiences as we did.
Watching him speak during the interviews was equally memorable. He thought deeply about what he was going to say, yet he spoke freely and colloquially. He seemed somewhat self-conscious, as though he wasn’t sure if what he was saying was right or if those watching would agree with him. I thought this made him very relatable. He was not some distant, untouchable, high-class writer. He had many of the same thoughts and feelings as we all do, the same struggles and questions about life—he just happened to write about them, and exceptionally well at that. Seeing this piece of humanity in the writer, whether it be in reading his work, learning about his personal life or watching him speak during an interview, makes you feel more connected and affectionate toward him.
As DFW said in one of his interviews, “what the really great artists do is they're entirely themselves. They're entirely themselves, they've got their own vision, they have their own way of fracturing reality, and if it's authentic and true, you will feel it in your nerve endings.”
Can’t wait for the next scholar-led event, Global Youth Service Day, on April 27th!
Paige Brewer, of Wilder, Ky., is a sophomore McConnell Scholar at the University of Louisville. She is studying political science and philosophy.