Edwin Abbot Abbott

A Romance of Many Dimensions

Flatland

Edwin Abbott Abbott

A humorous examination with serious overtones of the concepts of space, time, and dimension.

Finished this awhile ago but one part of the book that I still think about a lot is when they went and visited the one-dimensional point, how a single point is both the entire world and the sole inhabitant. Don’t know why but it’s made me think a lot about the self and what it may look like to cage yourself in your internal world… 

The first half of the book was a bit slow and not too memorable for me, the rules of Flatland just didn’t feel as compelling or imaginative as I was expecting (and sometimes there were bits that felt like they were over-explained and repetitive). But the latter half of the book where they explore 1D - 3D and invite the reader to imagine dimensions higher than 3 was MAGICAL!!! Amazing end to the book and leaves you with a lot of room to think about how lucky we are to perceive what we can in our current reality, but also the extent of how unknowable and mysterious reality can be because of our limited senses. BUT… how beautiful is it that despite not being able to see, touch, smell, taste, or hear further dimensions, we can imagine them through maths <3 

Finished this awhile ago but one part of the book that I still think about a lot is when they went and visited the one-dimensional point, how a single point is both the entire world and the sole inhabitant. Don’t know why but it’s made me think a lot about the self and what it may look like to cage yourself in your internal world… 

The first half of the book was a bit slow and not too memorable for me, the rules of Flatland just didn’t feel as compelling or imaginative as I was expecting (and sometimes there were bits that felt like they were over-explained and repetitive). But the latter half of the book where they explore 1D - 3D and invite the reader to imagine dimensions higher than 3 was MAGICAL!!! Amazing end to the book and leaves you with a lot of room to think about how lucky we are to perceive what we can in our current reality, but also the extent of how unknowable and mysterious reality can be because of our limited senses. BUT… how beautiful is it that despite not being able to see, touch, smell, taste, or hear further dimensions, we can imagine them through maths <3 

Very original. Cool analysis of the dimensions, especially considering that this was pre-Einstein. Hard to tell, but I suspect it might be satire of the culture of his day?

Cicero

The first half of the book is full of so-called satire on Victorian era’s sexism and social stratification. But I didn’t enjoyed it — it took ages for me to finish.

The second part is quite brilliant — easy-readable and though-provoking. Highly recommended read for anyone who asked him- or herself: «what is the nature of space and universe itself?». Still relevant, nevertheless the two centuries have passed! 

Sasha Maiboroda

The first half of the book is full of so-called satire on Victorian era’s sexism and social stratification. But I didn’t enjoyed it — it took ages for me to finish.

The second part is quite brilliant — easy-readable and though-provoking. Highly recommended read for anyone who asked him- or herself: «what is the nature of space and universe itself?». Still relevant, nevertheless the two centuries have passed! 

Edwin A. Abbott

Katherine Yang

19th-century Victorian social satire through forward-thinking mathematical study.

Behold yon miserable creature. That Point is a Being like ourselves, but confined to the non-dimensional Gulf. He is himself his own World, his own Universe; of any other than himself he can form no conception; he knows not Length, nor Breadth, nor Height, for he has had no experience of them; he has no cognisance even if the number Two; joe has he a thought of Plurality; for he is himself his One and All, being really Nothing. Yet make his perfect self-contentment, and hence learn this lesson, that to be self-contented is to be vile and ignorant, and they to aspire is better than to be blindly and impotently happy.

Wild.

Gavin

Likeable but not readable. I prefer the Dot and the Line or GEB

Flatland is a witty satirical novel whose purpose is set to uncover the paradox between the law of nature and our own perception of reality.

The author makes use of geometrical objects representing individuals as a way to portray the oversimplifications of reality by science, which often serves the purpose of justifying our current view of society rather than challenging it with newly found notions.

This is true for the natural sciences, but especially true for the social sciences, where our perception of the world greatly influences the outcome. Flatland underlines the overconfidence that is built around our experiences and how difficult it is to change our own views even in the face of evidence.

The book was written in the late 1800s, a period characterized by technological advancements promising a brighter future for everyone. Here Abbott takes a stand that we, 150 years later, are way too familiar about.

Knowing more about the world, about either the origins of the universe or the cause of suffering of our own societies, does not necessarily make us more sensible, more emphatic, more just.

And, in fact, as the author suggests approaching the romance's last pages, history can't help but repeat itself.

Ray Remnant

Flatland is a witty satirical novel whose purpose is set to uncover the paradox between the law of nature and our own perception of reality.

The author makes use of geometrical objects representing individuals as a way to portray the oversimplifications of reality by science, which often serves the purpose of justifying our current view of society rather than challenging it with newly found notions.

This is true for the natural sciences, but especially true for the social sciences, where our perception of the world greatly influences the outcome. Flatland underlines the overconfidence that is built around our experiences and how difficult it is to change our own views even in the face of evidence.

The book was written in the late 1800s, a period characterized by technological advancements promising a brighter future for everyone. Here Abbott takes a stand that we, 150 years later, are way too familiar about.

Knowing more about the world, about either the origins of the universe or the cause of suffering of our own societies, does not necessarily make us more sensible, more emphatic, more just.

And, in fact, as the author suggests approaching the romance's last pages, history can't help but repeat itself.

Noha Abdelaziz

لمن يعشق الرياضيات وذو خيال يكفي للايمان بوجود عالم ثاني يتكون من ابعاد ثنائيه فقط ف ليتجول في كتاب يصف تلك المدينه وهي الارض المسطحه حيث كل سكانها عباره عن مجموعه خطوط هندسيه ابتذائيه لم ترتقي بعد الى هندسه ثلاثية الابعاد 
اعتبره ك كتاب تعريفي عن رواية او ك زائر لنا من عالم فلات لاند ل يحكي عن بلاده في سطور بسيطه وفي الغالب معقده خياليا لا يمكن تخيلها ببساطه ، تحتاج للتركيز والتدقيق بشكل كامل وذهن صافي 
شكرا ل من رشحها لي ^_^ خفيفه جدا ولكن ذو عمق غير هين

Amr Khater 

Awesome, now I know why Sheldon Cooper loved flatland that much. 😂
A little bit sexist tho, but it was 1884 😅

Nada Ghanim

For the love of geometry and all the dimensions!!

Classic of science (and mathematical) fiction — charmingly illustrated by the author — describes the adventures of A. Square, a resident of Flatland, in Spaceland (three dimensions), Lineland (one dimension), and Pointland (no dimensions).

John Philpin

Read it forever ago … for a book written close to 150 years ago, it’s amazing how many times I tell people to read it.

Safiya 

Okay, so maybe it's not famous for a reason... In the realm of maths and geometry bringing abstraction into art is in itself a retransliteration of complexity, however, it just is a great book to understand orthogonal projections in a fun way!
The story was flat, but maybe purposefully, a sort of literary dadaïsm...
I am undecided of whether this was worth it or not, but I'm sure reading it back in the days of high-school might have felt better...
In any case, I liked it, at keat the genre!
I loved the punny double meaning, and that gives it the depth and height lost in a 2 dimensional world!

Simon Elliott Stegall

A charming book about what it would be like to live in one or two dimensions. Also seems like it's probably social satire, but I'm not super familiar with social prejudice in the 1800s, so it didn't do much for me on that count.

Adam

This one should be required reading in geometry class. A fun story that helps illustrate the idea of higher dimensions through conversation between 2D and 1D creatures and finally 3D and 2D creatures.

Jeremy Cote

This was quite a lovely read. I haven't read many books from the nineteenth century, and so it was fun to read through. I liked how the descriptions of the various geometries were done. Obviously, there were a some sexist parts in the book, but one has to keep in mind the culture of the time. Still, I found the story to be whimsical and enjoyable. You don't get to read many mathematical stories, so this was interesting.

A “romance in many dimensions” that has fascinated generations of readers with its clever blend of social satire and mathematical theory A Penguin Classic A work that continues to pose provocative questions about perception and reality, Flatland is a brilliant parody of Victorian society where all existence is limited to length and breadth—its inhabitants unable even to imagine a third dimension. The amiable narrator, A Square, provides an overview of this fantastic world—its physics and metaphysics, its history, customs and religious beliefs. But when a strange visitor mysteriously appears and transports the incredulous Flatlander to the Land of Three Dimensions, his world view is forever shattered. Written more than a century ago, Flatland conceals within its brilliant parody of Victorian society speculations about the universe that resonate in Einstein’s theory of relativity as well as the current “string-theory” of nature. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Flatland A Romance of Many Dimensions

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