You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.
David Foster WallaceRead
Nuclear weapons and TV have simply intensified the consequences of our tendencies, upped the stakes.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that modern developments, like nuclear weapons and television, magnify human tendencies and the resulting consequences.
David Foster Wallace's quote reflects on how certain advancements, particularly in technology and warfare, have heightened the ethical and moral dilemmas faced by humanity. With the advent of nuclear weapons, the potential for catastrophic consequences has increased dramatically, while television has altered our perceptions and reactions, amplifying both our fears and desires. This idea encourages a deeper examination of how our inherent tendencies are amplified by the tools and technologies we create.
Themes
NuclearTelevisionConsequencesTendenciesHuman Behavior
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the implications of modern technology, one might quote Wallace to emphasize the responsibility that comes with advancements.
More from David Foster Wallace
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It seems important to find ways of reminding ourselves that most 'familiarity' is meditated and delusive.
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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.
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Acceptance is usually more a matter of fatigue than anything else.
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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.
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