You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.
David Foster WallaceRead
I have heard upscale adult U.S. citizens ask the ship's Guest Relations Desk whether snorkeling necessitates getting wet...I now know the precise mixocological difference between a Slippery Nipple and a fuzzy navel.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote humorously highlights the absurdity of certain questions and showcases the author's extensive knowledge on trivial matters.
David Foster Wallace uses this quote to illustrate the absurdity of people asking ridiculous questions, such as whether snorkeling requires getting wet, highlighting the disconnect between the experiences expected during leisure activities and the overly analytical nature some individuals can exhibit. The mention of cocktail names also reflects a commentary on the trivial knowledge people sometimes possess, emphasizing how it contrasts with more meaningful experiences.
Themes
HumorAbsurdityTrivialKnowledgeExistential
In practice
Example use cases
During a comedy night, to make the audience laugh, one could say this quote to illustrate absurd scenarios.
More from David Foster Wallace
All quotes βEverything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe, the realest, most vivid and important person in existence.
David Foster WallaceRead
It seems important to find ways of reminding ourselves that most 'familiarity' is meditated and delusive.
David Foster WallaceRead
Under fun's new administration, writing fiction becomes a way to go deep inside yourself and illuminate precisely the stuff you don't want to see or let anyone else see, and this stuff usually turns out (paradoxically) to be precisely the stuff all writers and readers share and respond to, feel.
David Foster WallaceRead
Acceptance is usually more a matter of fatigue than anything else.
David Foster WallaceRead
Bliss - a-second-by-second joy and gratitude at the gift of being alive, conscious - lies on the other side of crushing, crushing boredom. Pay close attention to the most tedious thing you can find (Tax Returns, Televised Golf) and, in waves, a boredom like youβve never known will wash over you and just about kill you. Ride these out, and itβs like stepping from black and white into color. Like water after days in the desert. Instant bliss in every atom.
David Foster WallaceRead
Similar quotes
When you're going for a joke, you're stuck out there if it doesn't work. There's nowhere to go. You've done the drum role and the cymbal clash and you're out on the end of the plank.
Bob NewhartRead
Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.
Mark TwainRead
Ninety eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hardworking, honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then, we elected them.
Lily TomlinRead
Saying women aren't funny is now like saying Asians can't drive or saying black people have bad credit. It's just really, like, so obsolete.
Whitney CummingsRead
Last time I was down South I walked into this restaurant, and this white waitress came up to me and said: 'We don't serve colored people here.' "I said: 'that's all right, I don't eat colored people. Bring me a whole fried chicken.
Dick GregoryRead
I always wanted to be more of a person that people enjoy. Somebody that will make you laugh. I'm talking about just my personality, not necessarily how my music sounds.
Chance The RapperRead