David Foster Wallace

David Foster Wallace
Wallace in 2006
Wallace in 2006
Born(1962-02-21)February 21, 1962
Ithaca, New York, U.S.
DiedSeptember 12, 2008(2008-09-12) (aged 46)
Claremont, California, U.S.
Occupation
  • Writer
  • professor
EducationAmherst College (BA)
University of Arizona (MFA)
Harvard University
Period1987–2008
Genre
Literary movement
Notable worksInfinite Jest (1996)
SpouseKaren Green (2004–2008, his death)
Signature

David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and university professor of English and creative writing. Wallace's 1996 novel Infinite Jest was cited by Time magazine as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005.[1] His posthumous novel, The Pale King (2011), was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2012. The Los Angeles Times's David Ulin called Wallace "one of the most influential and innovative writers of the last twenty years".[2]

Wallace grew up in Illinois and attended Amherst College. He taught English at Emerson College, Illinois State University, and Pomona College. After struggling with depression for many years,[3] he died by suicide in 2008, at age 46.

  1. ^ Grossman, Lev; Lacayo, Richard (October 16, 2005). "TIME's Critics Pick the 100 Best Novels, 1923 to Present". TIME. Archived from the original on December 30, 2007.
  2. ^ Noland, Claire; Rubin, Joel (September 14, 2008). "Writer David Foster Wallace Found Dead". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 8, 2008. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  3. ^ Max, D. T. (2012). Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story: A Life of David Foster Wallace. Granta Books. p. 301. ISBN 978-1-84708-494-1.