Dystopia in our World.

Our World? The society of Matched? Are they alike?

The society of Matched is like our world in many ways. Different people will make different connections depending on their experiences in life. There are historical connections, technology connections, social media connections, and government control connections.

I will be talking about three different connections to our world that stood out in my mind.

1. The matching.
2. The ports.
3. The officials.

The Matching

The matching in Matched is like the dating sites in our world. In the book, the government uses the peoples 'stats' and genes to match them with their 'perfect' match. Dating sites use the information you put into them to match you with your 'perfect' match.


The government wants to have the best offspring possible. In a way, this is like selective breading. Selective breading is what farmers do to have the best crops/herds. I feel if we continue this way, we could eventually end up like the society of Matched.

Cassia is matched with her childhood friend, Xander. When she receives his micro card, she sees his face - a familiar, friendly face that comforts her. But there was a mistake, another face flashed up on the screen - Ky's. Ky is an aberration, and this means he is not allowed to be matched. For an experiment, the government put Ky into the dating pool to see what would happen.
Cassia and Xander believed they were the perfect for each other, but if Ky was allowed to be matched he would have been Cassia's 'perfect' match. Because there are so many rules in their society, they were kept apart.
I would not want to be kept apart from my 'perfect' match. It is not right: The society  in Matched is preventing people from having an amazing life with their true love.

"I climb into bed and push away thoughts of the red tablet. For the first time in my life, I'm allowed to dream of Xander" 22

Before you are matched, you cannot even dream about people. The citizens of the society are deprived of natural feelings, and teenage fun. As a teenager you date, you go out with your friends, and just have fun. The society takes away the childhood fun from its young people. That is just wrong.

The Ports
The ports in Matched track everything the citizens of the society do on them. Our society is starting to rely more and more technology and our computers also track everything we do. We can't stand to be without our phones. Not only do our phones act as phones, they act as computers. You can search things, watch videos, post on facebook, post on twitter, and communicate with anyone anywhere in the world.




When we were little for Christmas, we would ask for dolls and toys. Today, small children ask for electronics and games to do with computers, for example, a LeapPad. If we start to rely more and more on electronics and computers, we will start to lose our writing skills just like the society in Matched eliminated writing.

As Cassia and Ky grew closer, they started to share secrets with each other. Ky shared with her his story through drawings and also shared that he could write. When they were hiking the hill, if they were the first two to the top, which usually happened, he taught her to write in the dirt.

"I'm getting good at C. When I arrive at hiking I practically sprint to the top of the hill. After I check in with the Officer, I hurry to my spot next to Ky. Before he can say anything, I pick up a stick and draw a C right there in the mud next to him."173

When they switched hills, the group was split into pairs. Ky and Cassia were paired together. They had more private time together and got to know each other better. As this happened, Cassia fell in love with Ky. 

The writing and drawing let them express their feelings and brought them together. The society was restricting the people from expressing themselves and once Cassia felt the freedom she wanted it badly.

The Officials

The officials in the book Matched are the government and the police officers. They are everywhere, always watching, and always reporting. In a way, they are like human cameras, everywhere. This also ties into the technology in our world because we have cameras in buildings, in our phones, and in our computers. These cameras are always watching us and could be hacked. 


The people in Matched always have someone watching them, and also the cameras are always watching them. They never have privacy. I would not want someone always watching me. The citizens of the society don't even have privacy when they are sleeping. Every so often, the society monitors their dreams with sleep tags. You cannot control your dreams because they are your inner thoughts. The society has so much control over the people in Matched that they even know their dreams. It is just wrong that their thoughts are not even their own.

"I've always wondered what my dreams look like on paper, in numbers.Someone out there knows, but it isn't me. I pull the sleep tags from my skin... Glad that my turn is over."23

The society in Matched tried to create the perfect world. They eliminated diseases which is great: No one has to suffer through the horrible diseases we have today. They also eliminated their choices in everything. They didn't have the choice of where to live, what to wear, what to eat, where to work, and even who to love. They tried to create the perfect world but in doing so they eliminated all the things that made you, you. They had no choice in anything. Life is supposed to be fun, you only have one, but the society changed all of that. I would not want to live like they are forced to.

Be Different. Be Yourself.