Feed

Feed

by

M. T. Anderson

Feed: Part 3: The Others in Mal Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
The party continues. Everybody watches a comedy called Snowblind, but Titus notices that Violet isn’t laughing. While Titus walks to the bathroom, Link and Marty find him and tell him it’s time to malfunction. Titus hesitates and says, “not tonight” because Violet won’t want to. Link and Marty shrug and then “get mal.” They start to shudder and stumble.
Titus expresses reluctance to return to his normal lifestyle, in which it’s implied he “gets mal” fairly often. His attraction to Violet is causing him to question things he took for granted just a few weeks ago.
Themes
Corporations and Consumerism Theme Icon
Apathy, Happiness, and Satisfaction Theme Icon
Downstairs, Violet asks Titus if he’d like to walk around, and he agrees. Violet points out that Titus seems quiet, and he admits he doesn’t like that “people have just gone so quick back to like before.” Violet agrees. Then she admits that her feedware has been damaged. Doctors are trying to fix it, but they’re unsure how to proceed.
Titus admits what he has already implied: he’s dissatisfied with his normal routine, and feels disturbed that everyone seems to have forgotten the traumatic event at the club. Violet trades this bit of honesty with one of her own: her feedware is malfunctioning.
Themes
Corporations and Consumerism Theme Icon
Apathy, Happiness, and Satisfaction Theme Icon
Quotes
Titus senses that he’s protecting Violet from something, and this makes him feel good. They kiss, and Titus senses that he’s in love.
Titus seems to conflate the feeling of protecting Violet with the feeling of being in love with her, suggesting that he may not have more than a clichéd notion of what love really is.
Themes
Apathy, Happiness, and Satisfaction Theme Icon
Resistance Theme Icon