Edwin Abbott Abbott

FLATLAND: A ROMANCE OF MANY DIMENSIONS is an 1884 satirical novella by the English schoolmaster EDWIN A ABBOTT. Writing pseudonymously as "A Square," Abbott used the fictional two-dimensional world of Flatland to offer pointed observations on the social hierarchy of Victorian culture. However, the novella's more enduring contribution is its examination of dimensions. The story is about a two-dimensional world referred to as Flatland which is occupied by geometric figures. Women are simple line-segments, while men are polygons with various numbers of sides. The narrator is a humble square, a member of the social caste of gentlemen and professionals in a society of geometric figures, who guides us through some of the implications of life in two dimensions.

A Romance of Many Dimensions

Flatland

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

Uses geometry to portray individuals who lack 

of character, seeing the world in a similarly limited and narrow manner.

The depth or complexity of a person's character can be understood in terms of their ability to navigate and appreciate different perspectives, finding a "middle ground" or balance between opposing viewpoints.

Ray Remnant

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.

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.

Caitlin Bohannon

Abbott is able to envision multiple allegorical worlds to represent the different dimensions and how they might be perceived to others lacking or gaining additional dimensions, and yet he can't seem to fathom the idea of women as anything other than lesser beings to men - in dimension, in intellect, in importance - and this is how he defines them. No matter the complete re-envisioning of perception, governance, society, or education in each of the three worlds, he can't seem to stretch his imagination beyond this point for women. I know he hints that the lack of education for women in Flatland was the cause of many issues, but the Sphere - from our own world of Space - sends away Square's wife when explaining the 3rd dimension to him. Why is this kept consistent in each world and never given the increased dimension that provides the satire with each new meeting of the worlds?

A fun little mathematical and theological exercise, and a good starting point for imagining dimensions beyond the 3 (or 4) we can perceive, but this book neglects to truly reflect on the social issues it abstracts and satirizes along with its geometry.

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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