TOW #4 "Getting Away from Already Being Pretty Much Away from it All"

David Foster Wallace is considered by many to be one of the greatest authors of his generation, having received numerous literary awards including a MacArthur Fellowship grant for his work.  His 1997 collection of nonfiction writing, titled A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again includes seven essays of his, one of which is called “Getting Away from Already Being Pretty Much Away from it All”.  This essay was written by Wallace for Harper’s Magazine, which he describes as a “swanky East-coast magazine”, and describes his time spent covering the Illinois State Fair.  Throughout the piece, Wallace constantly contrasts his self-perceived cynical “East-coast” attitude with the nature of the Midwesterners that surround him.  In order to do so, Wallace utilizes personal anecdotes about his time spent growing up in rural Illinois.  In addition, in what is probably the most recognizable characteristic of Wallace’s writing, he employs a lofty vocabulary in order to further distance himself from the stereotypical, unintelligent crowds that surround him.  For example, when describing a Midwestern friend he writes, “She likes to put on a parodic hick accent whenever I utter a term like ‘peripatetic’” (117).  The essay, rather than simply being a description of the Illinois State Fair, serves primarily as a way for Wallace to highlight the grotesque nature of American consumption.  By making humorous and cynical insights into the type of people attending the state fair, Wallace effectively accomplishes his purpose.