Alice Munro application to Wallace's theory

In what ways could Wallace’s theory about education be applicable to the writing of Alice Munro? Justify your conclusion

The speech This is Water by David Foster Wallace speaks of the importance of sympathy and consciousness, which can be acquired through education, said to be a true freedom. He discusses how it is very common for humans to place themselves in the centre of their universe, and disregard the possible circumstance of those in their surroundings. He builds his argument that people's consciousness is always on auto, using a fish anecdote, and then to example to the supermarket. To prevent so, there is a possibility of reading literary fiction, as being in the centre of another's person life develops empathy and emotional intelligence. By evaluating simple situations that are easily neglectable and overlooked, his perspective allows us to see the situation from a different viewpoint, that lets empathy and emotional intelligence come through. He also believes that true freedom can only be acquired by learning how to think as well as being aware and conscious.

When it comes to Alice Munro ’s short stories, Wallace’s theory of education can be applied to it; the reader is able to experience the world from the protagonist eyes, and experience multiple emotions due to the fact that the stories have a development in a human experience and character. Building on the example of royal beatings, we develop empathy for the protagonist and her slight difficult childhood. It is through reading literature that we shift away from our « automatic » thought process, and learn how to be well-adjusted, through the recognition of the possible feelings of the protagonist but also our own.

Another aspect is that Munro’s short stories do concentrate on otherwise seen banal stories, in everyday life situations, and Wallace does the same since he depicts the average American adult life during the work week. The simplistic settings allow the reader to have a concentration of the character, to which favorisies the ability to put oneself in the protagonists view, which is the experience of something realistic but out of the ordinary of one’s life.

There are several possible links between Wallace’s theory and the writing of Alice Munro. Wallace's speech encourages us to break from our regular « automatic » thought process, and develop empathy and emotional intelligence through literature, and Alice Munro’s stories are a good way of doing so, as it does build us into being a more empathetic, sympathetic, conscious and adjusted individual.The speech This is Water by Wallace speaks of the importance of sympathy and consciousness, which can be acquired through education, said to be a true freedom. He discusses how it is very common for humans to place themselves in the centre of their universe, and disregard the possible circumstance of those in their surroundings. He builds his argument that people's consciousness is always on auto, using a fish anecdote, and then to example to the supermarket. To prevent so, there is the possibility of reading literary fiction, as being in the centre of another's person life develops empathy and emotional intelligence.