So the novelist David Foster Wallace, not long before his…
““So the novelist David Foster Wallace, not long before his suicide, spoke these words to the 2005 graduating class at Kenyon College: Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. And the compelling reason for maybe choosing some sort of god or spiritual-type thing to worship… is that pretty much anything else you worship will eat you alive. If you worship money and things, if they are where you tap real meaning in life, then you will never have enough, never feel you have enough… Worship your body and beauty and sexual allure and you will always feel ugly. And when time and age start showing, you will die a million deaths before they finally grieve you… Worship power, you will end up feeling weak and afraid, and you will need ever more power over others to numb you to your own fear. Worship your intellect, being seen as smart, you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out. But the insidious thing about these forms of worship is… they’re unconscious. They are default settings.16””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Worshiping any external thing—money, beauty, power, intellect—leads to emptiness; true meaning requires conscious, purposeful focus.
In simple terms: Blind devotion to anything leaves you unsatisfied.
Key Takeaway
Choose purposeful values.
Themes
spirituality
values
existential
Mood
thoughtful
inspirational
Type
philosophical
motivational
When to use this quote
- career planning
- relationship building
- financial decisions
- personal growth
Key Concepts
idolatry
meaning
self‑deception
Questions to Reflect On
- What do you truly value beyond material success?
- How can you shift from unconscious worship to intentional purpose?
A Different Perspective
Worship can be positive if directed toward altruism or higher ideals.