David Foster Wallace
American writer whose essays in Consider the Lobster and A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again are among the finest nonfiction of their era, combining erudition, self-consciousness, and moral seriousness. His Kenyon College commencement address 'This Is Water' became a cultural touchstone. He hanged himself at 46.
Works
- Infinite JestSprawling millennium-spanning entertainment cartridge and tennis academy
- The Broom of the SystemExperimental debut about language, consciousness, and domestic life
- Brief Interviews with Hideous MenFragmented interviews revealing masculinity, desire, and violence
- OblivionCollection of cerebral stories exploring consciousness and communication
- The Pale KingUnfinished novel about tax auditing and spiritual numbness
- Consider the LobsterEssays investigating modern life, entertainment, and animal consciousness
- A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do AgainEssays on travel, television, and the American experience
- Both Flesh and NotEssays about writing, philosophy, and popular culture