A Comparison of Themes in The Machine Stops and Feed

When comparing M.T. Anderson's Feed with E.M. Forster's short story The
Machine Stops, a common set of themes can be seen between them. The Machine
Stops is not unlike a further progressed form of Feed's world, overrun by
technology, without a thought for the Earth's environment. In The Machine Stops,
everyone is integrated into this Machine, which is seen as divine, and does not
give a second thought to those around them. In one instance, an air attendant is
chastised for keeping the protagonist, Vashti, from falling. It later states that the
Machine had made the custom of touching another human obsolete. In theory, if
Feed's society persisted on the path it was heading, it would eventually reach a
point where lesions take over the human body, and the Earth's environment is
irreversibly damaged. This would further lead to a society seen in The Machine
Stops, completely ignorant of their world collapsing around them.
In Feed, technology has literally been implanted into humanity, with nearly
all of the United States in a supremely negligent state towards their own wellbeing and the world around them. Technology has become all consuming, and the
entirety of the US have become Ignorant, self-centered idiots, even those in
high ranking political positions. This further advances the deterioration of present
day society and proves to an even further extent that technology will be the
downfall of man.
In The Machine Stops, everything is run by technology. This includes all
human interaction and conflict. The main form of communication is through the
Machine. Humans avoid one another with an almost physical repulsion. Those
that live in this world talk about the Machine as though it was divine, having
created them, not the other way around. In this world, technology rules all, giving
little time for much else. When their technology fails, so does their world.
The ending of Feed can be taken a number of different ways. It can be seen
as everything coming to a close, the end of the world owing to the global
environmental collapse. It can also be seen a solely Violet's death. Whichever the
case, the environmental catastrophes are enough to completely eliminate natural
reproduction, kill the oceans, and create the need for artificial clouds. However, it
seems that no one really cares. They are all too caught up in the Feed, and their
consumerism.
This leads to what could be interpreted as the end of the world
at the conclusion of the novel.
When someone is punished in The Machine Stops, they are threatened with
Homelessness. This may not seem so terrible a punishment for something like
murder, simply being made to stand outside. However, in this society, the Earth
has been destroyed. The air is tainted to a point that a respirator is necessary to
simply take a trip to the surface. At one point in the short story, Vashti glances at
the outside of a nearby airship and sees that it is stained with exposure to the
outer air. The only thing which is keeping out the death and destruction of the air

and groud below is the Machine. In the final pages of this story, as the Machine
stops, the air begins to taste and smell foul, outright killing some unfortunate
many.
The major themes present in Feed and The Machine Stops are those of the
end of the world, a dystopian future. They are present in both stories, however to
a greater degree in The Machine Stops. It is almost as though Feed's society has
been so advanced that they have progressed into a new age, past the age of
litter as they aptly name it in The Machine Stops. Their society`s have become
so ignorant of the collapsing environment around them, leading to the end of the
world. These works are somewhat prophetic of what could become of our society,
and should be addressed before it is too late. (I don`t know how to properly end
this, so I figured I would tie it onto present day. This essay is also 185 words over
the limit, so I need to cut it down to a maximum of 50-75 over.)