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spectracommunist's review against another edition
2.0
A Flatter story of a Flatland
I liked the concept but the story was quite boring, the scenes changed immediately and suddenly, i didn't quite enjoy the writing style...There was a lot discription of events & ethics of people of flatland which wasn't quite interesting, the events of Lineland & Spaceland were okay but it's just a forward going simple story. I didn't liked the female being so weak in Flatland & It's just a square story discribing his world & other worlds he meets out of curiosity...
I liked the concept but the story was quite boring, the scenes changed immediately and suddenly, i didn't quite enjoy the writing style...There was a lot discription of events & ethics of people of flatland which wasn't quite interesting, the events of Lineland & Spaceland were okay but it's just a forward going simple story. I didn't liked the female being so weak in Flatland & It's just a square story discribing his world & other worlds he meets out of curiosity...
shmark's review against another edition
1.0
In this 80 page book, the author somehow manages to pack in 40+ pages of aggressively sexist and breathtakingly classist rambling that has absolutely zero to do with the story.
He creates a world where class is inherently and inexplicably linked to intelligence, women are always inherently the lowest (and least intelligent) class, and speaks with complete disdain about any attempts of lower class beings to change the order of things. The lowest class beings are imprisoned forever or just executed, and this is explained as totally normal and necessary.
This is addressed in the editors note at the beginning, which more or less boils down to, "just because it bears a striking resemblance to our current society doesn't mean it's a metaphor," which doesn't make it any less awful to read.
Even the description of higher dimensionality is pretty weak. He makes the same description four or five times without ever really elaborating or approaching the issue from another angle.
In short: while it may be a fictional story about a fictional land, spending fully half the book to create and defend a wildly classist/sexist/eugenics-ey world really undermines what little value there is in his explanation of dimensionality.
He creates a world where class is inherently and inexplicably linked to intelligence, women are always inherently the lowest (and least intelligent) class, and speaks with complete disdain about any attempts of lower class beings to change the order of things. The lowest class beings are imprisoned forever or just executed, and this is explained as totally normal and necessary.
This is addressed in the editors note at the beginning, which more or less boils down to, "just because it bears a striking resemblance to our current society doesn't mean it's a metaphor," which doesn't make it any less awful to read.
Even the description of higher dimensionality is pretty weak. He makes the same description four or five times without ever really elaborating or approaching the issue from another angle.
In short: while it may be a fictional story about a fictional land, spending fully half the book to create and defend a wildly classist/sexist/eugenics-ey world really undermines what little value there is in his explanation of dimensionality.
adellama_05's review against another edition
2.0
Cool when you remember it was written in 1884
Very niche, very particular book. Dimensions were interesting. However, flatland is an incomplete world for like 50% incomplete.
Author writes entire plot points coming from the point of view of being misogynistic against women.
Very niche, very particular book. Dimensions were interesting. However, flatland is an incomplete world for like 50% incomplete.
Author writes entire plot points coming from the point of view of being misogynistic against women.
dgrstory's review against another edition
challenging
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
saritaroth's review against another edition
4.0
This novella is in a genre that few books can claim: the mathematical dystopian satire. At first, I all but gave up on the book about six chapters in; my fourteen-year-old daughter, however, was reading it simultaneously and urged me to continue reading it. And I am glad I did.
Flatland centers around the life of the protagonist, A. Square, who is, you guessed it, a square. He spends the first half of the book describing life in Flatland, a two-dimensional world comprised of different-shaped beings. The world is like any other world in that it has societal norms and a caste system. The shape's societal position is based on its number of sides. For example, servants are typically Triangles while aristocrats' sides tend to number in the hundreds or more.
Mr. Square lives a pretty normal existence. He has a wife, children, grandchildren. It all changes, however, when Sphere appears from Spaceland. Sphere teaches Mr. Square all about another world and his eyes are opened to a whole a new set of possibilities.
Although the book starts out slow, with A. Square's lengthy descriptions of Flatland and interactions between the shapes who live there, it definitely picks up once Sphere shows up. In addition, the scenes near the end of the book exhibit a sense of fear toward the Council presiding over the society that is palpable. I find myself sympathizing with Mr. Square at his desire to spread the new knowledge that he has learned when the other members of society are unwilling to receive it. I would highly recommend the book; if you find yourself bogged down by the overwhelmingly thorough descriptions in the first half of the book, keep soldiering on. I think, in the end, you will be satisfied.
Flatland centers around the life of the protagonist, A. Square, who is, you guessed it, a square. He spends the first half of the book describing life in Flatland, a two-dimensional world comprised of different-shaped beings. The world is like any other world in that it has societal norms and a caste system. The shape's societal position is based on its number of sides. For example, servants are typically Triangles while aristocrats' sides tend to number in the hundreds or more.
Mr. Square lives a pretty normal existence. He has a wife, children, grandchildren. It all changes, however, when Sphere appears from Spaceland. Sphere teaches Mr. Square all about another world and his eyes are opened to a whole a new set of possibilities.
Although the book starts out slow, with A. Square's lengthy descriptions of Flatland and interactions between the shapes who live there, it definitely picks up once Sphere shows up. In addition, the scenes near the end of the book exhibit a sense of fear toward the Council presiding over the society that is palpable. I find myself sympathizing with Mr. Square at his desire to spread the new knowledge that he has learned when the other members of society are unwilling to receive it. I would highly recommend the book; if you find yourself bogged down by the overwhelmingly thorough descriptions in the first half of the book, keep soldiering on. I think, in the end, you will be satisfied.
sunhelen's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
char_a_lot_te's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
maybe a more controversial 5 star ratings, but if you can get past the seemingly really outdated political views you would realise that this book will simultaneously dimensionally mindfuck you and also give you a poignant allegory of the time Abbott was in and also the times we live in now