Response to "Television" by Lydia Davis

I don't think this short story so much tells a story (in the traditional, narrative sense) as it shows us a characterization.  Outside of the narrator there really aren't any other characters.  The narrator's mother and husband are mentioned but we are given virtually no details about them.  In fact, the only people that are named and detailed are characters and actors on television.  The effect this has is a sense of alienation and disenchantment.  It creates the feeling that the only things important and worth focusing on can be found on TV, between the commercial breaks.
I think, in a way, that the point of view Davis uses makes the story into a sort of commentary on modern life.  Not necessarily the way it is, or the way it has to be, but the way it feels sometimes.  As she says, "It is not what you want to be doing.  It is that you are passing the time."  The story becomes a story about finding a deeper meaning in such a superficial world, albiet in a roundabout way.

Departing from the style of the writing to take a look at the structure, the main thing to notice is that the story is divided into three numbered sections.  In section 1 she talks about television in general and our relationship with it.  In 2 she talks about certain shows in particular.  And in section 3 she discusses movies and our relationship to them.  I think the sections are basically variations on a theme--looking at the issue from multiple points of view.
Another note about the structure is to look at the breaks between the paragraphs.  In sections 1 and 3 the paragraphs are single spaced, signifying that the sections each present a coherent narrative.  In section 2, however, the spaces between most paragraphs are doubled, showing a disconnect--a series of unrelated observations almost.  I think section 2 does an especially good job of creating a mood because it really feels like you are flipping mindlessly through the channels as you are reading.