ToWer

This work takes as its central theme the problematic phenomenon of binge-eating livestreams in contemporary internet culture, and represents it through the metaphor of a towering structure rising from the desert—an allegory of exploitative internet corporations. The protagonist, a man suffering from prolonged poverty and unemployment, is portrayed as perpetually hungry, while the bird accompanying him functions as a projection of his inner self. In the early stages of the narrative, the man, though emaciated, devotes himself to nurturing the bird with genuine affection. However, once targeted by a predatory internet company, he begins livestreaming under the guidance of the bird—an embodiment of his subconscious impulses. As his audience grows and revenue increases, his body fails to endure the excessive consumption demanded by the broadcasts. The bird offers him a tube for vomiting, symbolizing both physical survival and psychological degradation. The man continues to vomit and eat in pursuit of profit, gradually losing control and descending into madness under the domination of monetary desire. It even felt like experiencing hallucinations similar to having taken marijuana. Eventually, the bird dies, signifying the extinction of the man’s last remnant of rationality. With rising income came elevated consumption standards and escalating demands from the company, yet he remains convinced of his ability to “earn again.” In the final scene, he sacrifices the bird to open the last door, only to discover an empty room, with the key to escape hanging from the ceiling. The sole being capable of retrieving it—the bird—has already been killed by his own hands. Confronting the bird’s corpse, he realizes that his health, livelihood, and existence itself have all been exploited and exhausted by the corporate machinery. After his disappearance, the corporation remains unchanged, continuing its cycle of deception and exploitation by ensnaring the next greedy victim. Through this narrative, the work critiques the distorted values of contemporary online society, issues a warning against the excessive consumption of one’s own body in the pursuit of desire, and exposes the relentless exploitative structure of internet corporations.