Flatland, Edwin A. Abbott
Flatland, Edwin A. Abbott
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Flatland
A Romance of Many Dimensions

Author: Edwin A. Abbott

Narrator: James Langton

Unabridged: 3 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 01/18/2010

Categories: Fiction, Classic

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

As a satire, Flatland offers pointed observations on the social hierarchy of Victorian culture. However, the novella's more enduring contribution is its examination of dimensions; in a foreword to one of the many publications of the novella, noted science writer Isaac Asimov described Flatland as "the best introduction one can find into the manner of perceiving dimensions." As such, the novella is still popular amongst mathematics, physics, and computer science students.

The story is about a two-dimensional world referred to as Flatland. All existence is limited to length and breadth in Flatland, 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 Spaceland, a land of three dimensions, his worldview is forever shattered.

About Edwin A. Abbott

Edwin A. Abbott (1838-1926) has been ranked as one of the leading scholars and theologians of the Victorian era. He received highest honors in mathematics, classics, and theology at St. John's College, Cambridge, and in 1862 began a brilliant career, during which he served as schoolmaster of some of England's outstanding schools. At the same time he distinguished himself as a scholar, and in 1889 he retired to his studies. He is perhaps best known as the author of the mathematical satire and religious allegory Flatland. He also wrote Sphereland, Paradosis, and a number of nonfiction books, including English Lessons for English People, How to Write Clearly, and a biography of Francis Bacon.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Robert on March 02, 2009

When you read this book, keep two things in mind. First, it was written back in 1880, when relativity had not yet been invented, when quantum theory was not yet discovered, when only a handful of mathematicians had the courage (yet) to challenge Euclid and imagine curved space geometries and geometr......more

Goodreads review by Taufiq on November 22, 2024

This mathematical sci-fi novel, Flatland, written over 100 years ago, is more than just science fiction; its "dimension" transcends mathematical space, and it is also a satirical novel of the Victorian era. Written from the perspective of a "Square" in a 2-dimensional Flatland, the book tells about t......more

Goodreads review by Michael on March 23, 2017

A curious little novella about a man a two-dimensional world thinking literally out of the box. First he explains his world in which the angles you have the higher social status you have in Flatland - Circles being the highest rank. He meets someone from Lineland (one-dimensional) who is incapable o......more