[tanseydavid]

I want to second this recommendation.

This commencement speech that Wallace gave is deeply moving and thought-provoking to me every time I listen to it -- and I have probably heard it at least 10 times.

I have shared it with others, most of whom have had a very similar reaction to it.

[closedloop129]

How should one interpret the speech in light of his suicide? [1] He didn't shoot his head which suggests that his mind wasn't a master. Still, it makes me a bit worried that his thoughts could be the structure that made him suffer.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Foster_Wallace#Death

[tanseydavid]

I agree this is a very complex matter to consider but I dwell on the parts where he emphasizes the degree to which his own "default thinking mode" was like everyone else's, any you can choose to either suffer it or manage it.