M.T Anderson’s Feed is based on a future dystopian society. Consisting of a group of teenagers who are board and look for adventures to consume time. The group is a total of six people, Titus, Link, Marty, Calista, Loga, and Quendy. All of whom share one thing in common, the feed. The feed is a network based microchip that is installed in the head accounting for 73% of their society way of life. Since technology is so advance the way of life as we know isn’t the same. The majority of the people feel that school is just an option and is not looked at as a requirement since the feed automatically installs knowledge and does the critical thinking for feed users.  Which brings up concerns for Violet, Titus’s friend. The negative stigma violet expresses toward the feed through out the book takes off when she realizes the Microchip markets the consumers interest according to the users preferences and makes suggestions according to likes and dislikes. Violet is a distinctive, rebellious character that is agents being categorized, programed and stream lined to her apparent personality, and the feed limits buyer options do to this process which causes potential friction.
Violet motions on (97) that everything they see, and think get thrown into this big calculation. The whole stream lining personality idea is so there’s an easier consumer base for products to be sold to. Violet doesn’t like to be like the others, blinded by what’s really happening. Demographic test places the feed population into groups so they can send adds according to what feed users supposedly like…so to through off this system she reflects false interest in things like wacky cloths while shopping with Titus and at the same time giving him the odd face to indicate her fake intentions (98).She also says “What I’m doing, what I’ve been doing over the feed for the last two days, is trying to create a customer profile so screwed, no one can Market to it. I’m going to become invincible”(98). Which explains her soon to come, bad luck.
Next is a great example of her outlook on life in reference to her master plan, and all the amenities she’s searching for. The list Violet sent Titus was one based on a free spirited lifestyle with no restrictions and way less complications that there faced with in their dystopia. According to her plan she don’t want to feel like everyone else, so as you can imagine the list consisted of dancing, flying over a active volcano and spit stuff in it, she also describes an interesting one that wishes she can sit with Titus some where without hearing an engine. The last wish mentioned was particularly interesting because, of the visual image it drew for me, putting me in their busy high-tech, futuristic, society.  Violets only question on her list is number 5, she asks “is there any moss anywhere”(229) which indicates to the average educated person that moss can’t survive with too much pollution. It makes me visualize a very polluted/compromised atmosphere. Most of this society must be unhappy for a female like Violet to attempt to suppress the feed.
Through out Feed I couldn’t help but notice a tremendous amount of complications Violet is faced with including, what I call back fire from her master plan. The system of Feed obviously malfunctioned do to the complexity of her actions. Showing false intrest in products and refuses to purchase anything. Her pessimistic persona on the society she lives in is expressed through out feed, for instance the conversation on the beach  she has with Titus about all the after effects to the sea do to discoveries/technology. Violet continues to explain the orange suits they wore in order for them to avoid the horrific odder in the air, and describes the purple, yellow, green, bluish water their viewing as the sunrays change the water color(179). Through out her search for happiness she does feel something besides depression that makes Violet think she’s living and that’s the pain she feels.
Although all these dilemmas that Violet faces, she still can’t catch a break. A meg wave of bad luck approaches her half way in the book. Through out the story she seems to have bad experiences with the system which keeps causing her complications that aren’t even affordable for the average person. Especially when she’s considered low class compared to Titus’s and the rest of his friends. Violet didn’t ask for the memory loss that happen after her going into Mal and freaking out on Quendy on   . Violet can’t remember a thing from when she was six, so Violets dad shared his empathy with her by protested her complications and sent FeedTech corporation a message of her testimony. Sad enough they replied with a discouraging tone revealing the company had no interest in helping Violet out do to her never making purchases, but agrees to review her options if she decides to start being an asset by using her credit in the feed.  Even though all the complications accrue Violet refers to pain as feeling alive, but she doesn’t want to die either. Karma must exist in their world as well, her master plan seem to back fire and for FeedTech to respond the way they did she must of not been the first to attempt the rebellious acts. Violet’s luck ran out as she is constricted to her death bed. Titus and Violets father can’t help but know when she will pass on due to a gage in the fees that provides a percentage of her livelihood. as Feed approaches the end the chapter titles have numbers which get smaller and smaller. The numbers resemble the closer she is to shut down/death. During the last few pages when Violet is at 4.6% death is near reflecting on her past the feed was installed late at seven years old, when it’s usually installed soon after birth. Violets father felt it was necessary since he didn’t have it until later on In life as well. Although he had an older version of the feed that was placed on his back and made his eyes turns orange when it was in use. He still decided to get the feed installed, because after being secretly taunted at an interview he felt that the other two who where also trying out for the interview where sending each other messages he couldn’t intervene on since he  didn’t have the feed installed at the time. that is why Violet had it installed at 7 because he doesn’t  want Violet to miss out on opportunities he missed out on. The guilty last words in feed of Violets father left his mouth with disappointment in him self feeling responsible for her agonizing death.
“to all those who resist the feed” M.T.A this quote which is in the preview pages of Feed makes a lot of sense as the book ends. It reflect on my argument as well as connecting to Violets Rebellious acts throughout Feed. The fight agents control through the feed by monopolizing peoples thoughts and markets products according to feed users interest. Just another shallow case of the governmental society withholding your thought patterns. Just like current days with tracking social media patterns by keys words in, post, blogs, pictures and tends to advertises products knowing you might be interested. Therefore, restricting your market purchases/options. Besides being a reflection of Violets situation in Feed, we are facing these problems today.
