Full-Bodied Allegory: A Review of FLATLAND

A satire of Victorian society, set within a two-dimensional plane of existence, peopled by geometric shapes, Flatland is anything but ordinary. Religion, education, socioeconomics, and phallus-centrism are just a few subjects touched upon in the novel’s brief page count, with most of its author’s efforts–more than half the book–spent describing the physical laws and governmental/intellectual hierarchy of the fictitious realm. As all the characters are simple shapes, their places in society predicated upon internal angularity–the protagonist is a square (named, fittingly, “A. Square”)–the need for exposition is both a necessary evil as well as a drag on the story’s pacing and plot; taken together with its convoluted prose style and long-winded descriptions, it’s a wonder, had the basis of the novel not been so intriguing, if this work would be as popular as it is today…if remembered at all.

Where Flatland really hits its stride is in Square’s interdimensional travels. After a previous, and rather solipsistic, altercation with a being from one-dimensional space, known as Lineland, Square is humbled, as he’s whisked away to Spaceland, a.k.a. three-dimensional space, with the assistance of a knowledgeable sphere. Eventually, Square and Sphere visit Pointland (or zero-dimensional space) for a true lesson in solipsism!

Anyone with even a modest grasp of math will likely pick up on the descriptive logistics of Flatland’s world, and the universes beyond, without much difficulty. Perhaps, as a product of its time, when education, especially advanced mathematics, was less-so within the reach of the average person, this text would have posed more of a challenge. Regardless, it is still an ingenious concept, and well worth a couple hours of reading time.

Interesting fact: In 2002, popular math author, Ian Stewart, wrote a sequel to Flatland, entitled Flatterland.