What/how is matched a dystopian novel?

A dystopian novel is usually fictional and deals with a specific society in which things just aren't right. Example, the community is frightening, dehumanizing, controlled by a totalitarian government, or possibly a society that has met with some type of disaster. Dystopias are the polar opposite of utopias; we're not talking about happiness and freedom.

Matched fills the requirements of a dystopian novel because it takes place in a futuristic setting, its characters are controlled by the Society (the Society makes all life choices), and the society even controls the population's thoughts. Technology has been eliminated barring ports, scribes, and readers; jobs are based on specialization (people are only taught what they need to fulfill their own specific duties), and all but a Hundred Songs, Hundred Paintings, Hundred Stories, Hundred Poems survived the cleaning up of culture. The Society believes that when the mind is overwhelmed with too much...... it cannot truly appreciate anythng.

Hope that helps!