Anderson, M.T. (2002). Feed. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 0-7636-1726-1. p. 236
Genre: Science Fiction
Interest Age: 16+
Curriculum: NA
Reader’s Annotation
Imagine a world where technology is hardwired into the brain of almost every living person on the planet and there is no turning it off.
Plot Summary
The “feed” is an advanced internet-like technology that is implanted into the brain of almost every living person on the planet. Through the Feed, kids like Titus, our narrator, chat with his friends, go shopping, do drugs (or “mal” as it is referred to), get directions, get the news, share memories, and live their lives. The Feed is owned and operated by major corporations which have taken over everything including education (School is a trademarked product) and people have merely become disposable consumers who can no longer read, write, or think for themselves. Titus lived in blissful ignorance until he met Violet while on Spring Break on the moon.
Violet is not like the rest of his friends. She had her Feed installed later in life. She talks funny, using words Titus can barely understand; she plans to mess with the data miners who are constantly trying to profile her as a consumer; she can read and write. But soon after meeting at a club on the moon, Titus and Violet are “hacked”. While Titus seems to recover quickly, it soon becomes apparent that Violet has suffered far more permanent damage which causes her Feed and her entire body to begin malfunctioning.
As Violet’s mind, body and life slowly begin to break down like a malfunctioning piece of hardware, Titus is forced to confront some of the ugly and disturbing truths about the Feed and the world in which he lives.
Critical Review
Anderson creates a sinister piece of dark science fiction which satirizes (in a non-too-subtle-fashion) consumerism, the dumbing of society, and human beings’ growing dependence on technology. In the world of Feed people are viewed as nothing more than consumers; through the Feed, people are advertised constantly. There is no privacy and corporations know everything about you in order to sell you the latest fashions and toys. Everyone, from Titus and his friends to the President of the United States, speak in a sort of dumbed down, slang/profanity laden, California Valley Girl vernacular. Translating and understanding most of the dialogue is a challenge for the reader. It takes several chapters before the reader is aware of exactly what is being said and what is happening in the story.
Anderson has some pretty clear concerns when it comes to technology. Being technologically proficient can give the false impression of intelligence. Titus and his friends can look up anything on the Feed and therefore do well in School, but they don’t actually “know” much. They have no ability to evaluate any of the information they receive and accept everything that is given to them through the Feed as fact. The same could be said of many young people and the internet today. Anderson also addresses the physical effects of technology on human beings. In Feed, people have begun developing lesions all over themselves. These lesions, obviously an effect of having the Feed connected to one’s body for their entire life, have become so common that celebrities have turned them into something fashionable and sexy. It’s easier for major corporations to make the ill side effects of their products appear desirable rather than actually fix the problem or stop making the product. The later is in fact impossible since the Feed has become so ingrained in the lives of the people that someone without the Feed, as Violet’s father discovers, is not accepted into “normal society”. They become sort of eccentric weirdos or, in the worse cases, outcasts and terrorist dissenters.
Feed is a challenging read on several levels. First, there are very few likable characters for the reader to root for. Our narrator Titus, is a narcissistic, spoiled brat who willfully keeps himself ignorant about the realities of the world because he is too busy buying things and hanging out with his friends. Even when Violet shoves the ugly truths in his face, he simply pushes her away. Also, the futuristic vernacular and slang which nearly all the characters use can be annoying and difficult to decipher. Characters refer to each other as “unit” (which translates, “dude”) and refer to things as “brag” (cool) or “meg” (very, really). Ultimately, this language helps immerse the reader in this future world and is used to make a point about the dumbing down of language (and society in general), but comprehending the dialogue is challenging in the beginning.
This is dark science fiction. Anderson does not give the reader any easy answers or story book endings. This is not the story of how one person over throws a corrupt system and changes the world. This is the story of how small and insignificant the individual becomes in an ultra consumerist society which is so obsessed with luxury and technology that people would sooner bury their heads in the sands and live in self delusion than struggle to make the world a better place. For those readers who enjoy science fiction which provides a distorted, fun house mirrored image of reality, Feed provides plenty of food for thought and discussion.
Author Info
M.T. Anderson was born November 4, 1968 in Cambridge, MA. His first young adult novel was Thirsty (1998) about a high school freshman who finds he’s becoming a vampire. He has also written the YA novels Burger Wuss (1999) about love and revenge and The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing Vol. I & II (2006 & 2008 respectively). Vol. I won the National Book Award for Young People as well as Printz Honor Book in 2007.
Concerning his own writing Anderson has said, "We are so used to the bizarre images, cabals, rituals, and rites that constitute our lives that they seem natural, even invisible, to us….I admire books that facilitate renewed awareness of the way we live, and this is what I'm attempting in my own work: renewed awareness both for myself and, I hope, for my readers. That's my goal, in any case."
"M. T. Anderson." Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Literature Resource Center. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.
Book Talking Ideas
1. In the world of Feed, how to big corporations view people? Are there any similarities between the marketing/advertising in Feed and the marketing/advertising today?
2. In Feed, technology is essential. What are some examples from the book that exemplify this? Today, has technology become indispensable?
3. Is technology, particularly the internet, making people smarter or dumber? Why?
Challenges
The inclusion of Feed in a Middle School Library in Vancouver, WA has been challenged. The book contains a lot of profanity and has some sexual situations. The subject matter and reading level is probably beyond most Middle School students, but the themes are very appropriate for High School readers.
Why I choose this title
I was really intrigued by the premise. I found the book on a “Challenged YA Book” list on Amazon and was curious to see why it was challenged.
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