Feed

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In Anderson's novel, Feed, we are taken on an incredible journey to the moon with a cast of teenagers whose world revolves around the advancement of technology. Through this creative novel we are able to see many different things that can connect with our world today, which is extremely important when you are teaching to adolescents. The reason being is because at this stage in their life they want to be able to relate to the novel in some way or another so they can be interested from the beginning all the way to the end. One of the major things Anderson wants us to realize is the fact that you don’t always have to conform with what society is telling you to do; even if you’re going to be an outcast. The other big point Anderson is trying to display through this novel is the fact that humans are destroying the earth because their whole lives revolve around technology.
One of the main points that Anderson tries to convey to the reader is that you don’t always have to conform the way society has it laid out for you. Anderson does this extremely well with the two main characters Titus and Violet throughout the whole novel. This is because for the longest time Violet had the rare choice of having the feed or not while her other peers didn’t. This is one example that shows the reader that even though everyone around her has the feed, for six years she didn’t have it because she wasn’t going to conform. Titus on the other hand wasn’t so fortunate and always had the feed so of course he tried to be normal as much as possible because any sign of being abnormal could cause him to be an outsider. This is a great message to adolescents because it shows them that they don’t have to conform to fit in. Just be yourself and make choices that are going to make you happier in the future.
Another great point Anderson threw into this novel is to never give up on your dreams no matter what society or anyone is telling you daily. Here it states, “But we have entered a new age. We are a new people. It is now the age of oneiric culture, the culture of dreams” (149). In this quote we can see how much Anderson wants his readers to wake up and know that whatever they dream it can become a reality. He shows the reader that this is a new age where anything can happen, and the opportunities are endless. This is great for adolescents to read because it could give them the confidence to go chase that dream, and never look back.
The last major part of this novel that brings it all together is that it connects with our present time extremely well. During this time period humans have completely destroyed earth. We as a whole are destroying it as this paper is being written, and Anderson is trying to show us what our future could look like if we don’t change our ways. Another thing that drives this notion that humans are destroying earth is the rapid advancement of technology. Even though to the eye it seems that we need to keep making faster technology advancement to make the world a better place, but in reality, earth is crumbling. This novel is trying to show us that maybe it would be smarter if we took it slow to conserve what’s left of the environment.
Overall, this novel was great and extremely interesting from start to finish. Anderson does a great job through many different aspects showing how the world could turn out if we keep living out lives this way. This also helps adolescents that are reading this novel in this day in age to connect it to their own lives. They may even start to question if they are using technology to much or even if it’s hurting the environment. This is very important to adolescent readers because they need to be able to relate while staying interested, which Anderson does a phenomenal job is displaying.

Comments

  1. Taylor ScottNovember 3, 2019 at 6:47 PM

    I agree with your take on Anderson's novel. I think that our society is entirely too focused on being one and the same. Each person is unique, yet we conform to the same interests and pastimes. I agree that we are also not helping the earth with our use of technology, even though we tend to think that it is. How do you think that it is hurting the environment?

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  2. Eva YoussefNovember 3, 2019 at 10:36 PM

    I love your detailed review of the book. I like that you mention this would be a good read to teach adolescents, but do you think that kids can still be able to appreciate the impact of technology like we do if they never knew of a world before technology was such a big part of our society?

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