Edwin A. Abbott

I call our world Flatland, not because we call it so, but to make its nature clearer to you, my happy readers, who are privileged to live in Space. Imagine a vast sheet of paper on which straight Lines, Triangles, Squares, Pentagons, Hexagons, and other figures, instead of remaining fixed in their plac-es, move freely about, on or in the surface, but without the power of rising above or sinking below it, very much like shadows-only hard and with luminous edges-and you will then have a pretty correct notion of my country and countrymen. Alas, a few years ago, I should have said "my universe": but now my mind has been opened to higher views of things. In such a country, you will perceive at once that it is impossible that there should be anything of what you call a "solid" kind; but I dare say you will suppose that we could at least distin-guish by sight the Triangles, Squares, and other figures, moving about as I have described them. On the contrary, we could see nothing of the kind, not at least so as to distinguish one figure from another. Nothing was visible, nor could be visible, to us, except Straight Lines; and the necessity of this I will speedily demonstrate. Place a penny on the middle of one of your tables in Space; and leaning over it, look down upon it. It will appear a circle. But now, drawing back to the edge of the table, gradually lower your eye (thus bringing yourself more and more into the condition of the inhabitants of Flatland), and you will find the penny becoming more and more oval to your view, and at last when you have placed your eye exactly on the edge of the table (so that you are, as it were, actually a Flatlander) the penny will then have ceased to appear oval at all, and will have become, so far as you can see, a straight line.

Edwin A. Abbott (1838–1926) was a schoolmaster and theologian well known as the author of the religious and mathematical allegory Flatland (1884). This book was originally published in 1913, forming the first part of two volumes on the historical significance of various elements of the Bible. The elements analysed within the books are diverse, ranging from differences of phraseology between the Gospels to the significance of ritual. The key aim is to contextualise these elements as a means of gaining a greater understanding of the meaning behind the Scriptures. Both books will be of value to anyone with an interest in biblical exegesis and the history of theology.

Edwin A. Abbott (1838–1926) was a schoolmaster and theologian well known as the author of the religious and mathematical allegory Flatland (1884). This book was originally published in 1913, forming the second part of two volumes on the historical significance of various elements of the Bible. The elements analysed within the books are diverse, ranging from differences of phraseology between the Gospels to the significance of ritual. The key aim is to contextualise these elements as a means of gaining a greater understanding of the meaning behind the Scriptures. Both books will be of value to anyone with an interest in Biblical exegesis and the history of theology.

Flatland, Edwin Abbott's story of a two-dimensional universe, as told by one of its inhabitants who is introduced to the mysteries of three-dimensional space, has enjoyed an enduring popularity from the time of its publication in 1884. This fully annotated edition enables the modern-day reader to understand and appreciate the many 'dimensions' of this classic satire. Mathematical notes and illustrations enhance the usefulness of Flatland as an elementary introduction to higher-dimensional geometry. Historical notes show connections to late-Victorian England and to classical Greece. Citations from Abbott's other writings as well as the works of Plato and Aristotle serve to interpret the text. Commentary on language and literary style includes numerous definitions of obscure words. An appendix gives a comprehensive account of the life and work of Flatland's remarkable author.