The book “This is Water”, by David Foster Wallace is often used as a graduation speech. It is used due its inspiration and wisdom which is relatable(significant) for graduating college students. Yet he uses abstract metaphors and diction which fall outside the norms of a graduation speech. Dirk’s description of a genre is a way of obtaining a goal by following guidelines set previously. Although his speech is in alignment with the graduation genre he does often times goes astray from the norm of what the genre has previously displayed.
One example of how he follows the genre of “graduation speeches” is when he urges us to think outside the norm, or “default”. His advise that we should be different than others and think differently from others are common place among graduation speeches. Wallace explains how he also struggles with getting lolled into the repetitive routine of a day. Making himself vulnerable is a effective rhetorical tool that reveals that he too makes mistakes. Wallace follows the genre of a classic graduation speech by relating to his audience. The audience Wallace is speaking to plays a pivotal role. His genre of book is for a specific crowd, a collegiate one to be exact. Due to the fact that he mentions a liberal arts education will help us to think. All of these examples Wallace uses are typical for the genre of graduation.
On the other hand, there are some instances in which Wallace deviates from what is typically expected. One example, is when he says “fuck” or “bullshit” in the middle of a sentence (Wallace,77,125). In most graduation speeches the speaker does not use profanity, so to hear that can be a shock for the audience. Another shock that falls far from the genre of graduation speeches is when he talks about people “shooting themselves in…the head” (Wallace, 58). Wallace’s abstract diction and ability to talk on a very informal and personal level is what makes “This is Water’ such an interesting graduation speech.
“This is Water” has elements of a ordinary graduation speech but because Wallace broke from the the norm it was more interesting to read.
Cite quotes from Wallace appropriately: “(Wallace, 110)” is sufficient for the “worship your intellect” quote. I don’t see you engaging with Dirk’s definition of genre; see if you can integrate what you already have with her understanding of the concept.
I’m not sure I understand what you mean by “is often used as a graduation speech.” Wallace gave the speech only once as far as I know, at Kenyon College in 2005. Even in the final version, you didn’t really engage with Dirk’s definition of genres, which was an important part of the assignment.