The "This is Water" speech was about how in our conceded need to make the entire universe about us we forget one thing, and that is how in every interaction with anything or anyone we are not always the most important person. In fact sometimes its the opposite sometimes when we're in a hurry and think someone is in the way when we're actually in their way. Because we aren't the center of the universe, and everybody has a different take on life and and a different perspective on the events that unfold. Wallace tells us that we have to be active in see others point of view because if we aren't in our default state we are petty and uncaring and how we function in society is to affected negatively. So to survive our everyday lives we must be perceptive in how we see the world.
The Morrison Nobel Lecture was a story about a blind, old lady who was so wise she was revered by everyone but also isolated by them. After being visited by some young people she is asked a question, if the bird in there hands is dead or alive. She answers to them that she doesn't know, and that the birds life in in their hands. But she also reprimands them for there attempted mockery and disrespect not to just her just to an innocent life as well. The young people then tell her that that they were there for knowledge's sake and that she should have been more forthcoming with her wisdom and not so quick to judge.They then tell her that they have no bird, only the want for knowledge. The metaphor in this speakers context, is that the bird is language. Because with language comes power. What you say can have a positive or negative affect on the world around you, and in turn change ones perspective.
Perspective, that is what similar about these two text. That fact that if you are active enough in how you use your outlook on life and how you use the power that language entails, you can not only change your own perception but get a glimpse or at the very least have an affect on someone else's.
What is different is the means to get to this altered perception. On one hand you could change how you view the world and try to see it from someone else's point of view, and on the other you could change how you describe the world and with the knowledge that you've accumulated, to try to influence it for better or for worse.
Thank you for you blog post and I agree with your statement. Your point for “This is Water” is very true in the sense that we are always concerned about ourselves and think that we are more important than the next person. With this mindset, it is hard to stay alert of other people’s feelings and emotion and if we are not careful in how we present ourselves and react in a very unlikely way or manner, we would mostly likely be deemed as an arrogant individual with a whole load of stuff going on. This can also be related to “The Morrison Nobel Lecture” in the sense of perspective. How we present ourselves also has an effect on someone else and we may not even know it.
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