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Feed by Matthew Tobin Anderson

John Nguyen

Vocabulary:

lesion

central nervous system

stimulus

neuron

lobotomy

Reflection

Feed is a novel by Matthew Tobin Anderson of dystopian America where humans have a
computer implanted in their heads. It was written as a satire to to address real-world issues such
as climate change, corporate power, information mining, and consumerism. These computer
implants, known as the feednet, relate to psychology in that it uses, applies, and references
specific terminology from the biology of the brain such as lesion, central nervous system,
stimulus, neuron, and lobotomy.

In this novel, Titus is an interminably ignorant teenager and the son of incredibly rich
parents. He and his friends decide to travel to the moon during spring break for pleasure. Titus
behavior in this situation is a lot like what the people in his world would call normal: delirious,
immature, and not very intelligent. Although this behavior is generally frowned upon in our
society today, it was considered in this world as the social norm. Because the feednet has taken
complete control of the mind, their sentences are often left unfinished and their conversations
are usually done online even when they are next to each other. Often this behavior leads to
deindividuation or the loss of behavior when in groups. The feednet, Titus learns, is connected
to the central nervous system. However, the feednet also causes lesions and loss of skin. Titus
and his friends realize these side effects, but they all do not care at all that much.

There is a certain relationship between the two main characters that is romantic and
somewhat disconfiguring. Towards the beginning of the book, Titus finds himself with a girl
named Violet. She unliked Titus is well educated and knowing of what is going on in the world
around her. A psycholoist might say that she has spent her childhood making many neural
pathways, inevitably making her much smarter. The tense relationship between Titus and Violet
occurs because although they are in love, they are not on the same page on world issues. For
example, Titus is a very conforming individual who is apathetic of the world around him. Violet
on the other hand is individualistic and concerned about the poverty rates outside of the nation.
Because of their opinions on the world differ, they argued a lot about what was right or wrong.
Or, more often, Violet tried to share her opinion while Titus was frustrated at Violet and himself
for not knowing any different. These interactions are like the different types of cultures that
portray or promote different psychological traits. For example, Titus is like the Japanese culture
where everbody tries to fit in and follow a leader without question. Violet is like American
culture where they value individualism and freedom. Although the portrayal of these cultures is
masked differently in the novel, the existence of it is still evident.

Feed is a book that portrays psychology in that it invents a gadget that employs the
biology of the mind. This is the biological part of psychology. It portrays the biology of the mind
in a special way through the feednet, where certain parts of the body is used to express how
certain parts of the brain is used. For example, when Violet goes in mal, or malfunction, she
looses control of her entire body, jerking and rolling around. This concept illustrates how the
brain controls the entire body.

However, in addiiton to just the biology of the mind, Feed demonstrates a lot of social
psychology. At the beginning of the book, a hacker enters the mind of Titus and his friends,
where they start screaming at the top of their lungs, "We enter a time of calamity." At face
value, this could be taken as they were literally hacked and their brains started malfunctioning.
But I see it also as a deindividuation, or how people lose control and self-awareness when
concealed in a mask or crowd. Another time, Titus and Violet are dating and they encounter a
crowd of people protesting at a college campus. They ask what they are protesting for, but none
of them know what. This is an example of social loafing, or abandoning from responsibiliy in the
presence of a group. Finally, Feed also demonstrates social psychology when Violet approaches
Titus in a closed hotel room in a sexual attempt. Titus, who is uninterested, ignores the behavior
and does not respond. This is an example of operant conditioning, which is rewarding the
desired behavior and ignoring the undesired behavior. This approach eventually allows Violet to
realize that something is wrong, and then changes her attitude.

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