Hi everyone! I'm back home from my wonderful thanksgiving break now. (I know I've been away longer than that =P) Over which I, along with spending time with my father and his family, read the first three chapters of Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott. I find this book very intriguing and can't wait to dig further into it, but for now I am just going to tell you about and summarize the first three chapters.
CHAPTER UNO: Of the Nature of Flatland
In chapter one the Abbott starts his story by explaining Flatland (so called to "make its nature more clear" p.1 to the readers). Flatland is the world he lives in. He gives us an example of how the people in his world see objects. He says it is like placing penny in the middle of a table and looking directly above it so that we see a circle, but then as you lean back it becomes an oval. Abbott says that this is how we see objects in our world (which we are privileged to live in) spaceland. He then goes on to tell us if we looked at the penny from the edge of the table it would appear to be a straight line even though it is truly a circle; this is what "Flatland" is like. Everything appears to be just a line. He then compares the Flatlanders to sailors looking out at land coming up on the horizon.
CHAPTER II: Of the Climate and Houses of Flatland
Abbott starts out chapter two by explaining that Flatland has four points of the compass: North, South, East, and West as in our land. He states that in Flatland there is "no sun nor heavenly bodies" p. 9, therefor for the Flatlanders cannot determine the North in the way that the people of our land do. Abbott says that Flatland has a pull to the south and that the Flatlanders know that the rain always comes from the North. He then goes on to describe the houses in Flatland most commonly a five-sided pentagonal shape; there are no houses that are squares or triangles because they were outlawed do to their small angels. The make up of the houses include two Northern sides that connect into a point making the roof, and for the most part have no doors. On the East side there is a small door for the Women, and on the West a much larger one for the Men; the South side or floor is usually door-less. Also there are no windows in the houses because all light (day and night, inside and outside) is always equal. There are no houses that are squares or triangles because they were outlawed do to their small angels. In the house side-walls run North to South.
I'm starting to think that these "shapes" and Flatlanders are the people of our world and that Flatland is really is trying to show us our flat mind.
CHAPTER THREE: Concerning the Inhabitants of Flatland
In Chapter three we get a better idea of these "Flatlanders" that we have been hearing so much about from Abbot. He says that "the greatest length or breadth of a full grown inhabitant of Flatland may be estimated at about eleven of [our] inches. Twelve inches may be regarded as a maximum" p.12. He then list that Women are straight lines, soldiers and lowest class of workmen are isosceles triangles almost straight lines them selves with tight angles, Middle class are equilateral triangles, professional men and gentlemen are squares (this is Abbott's class) and five-sided figures, Nobility have several degrees beginning with six-sided figures rising to in number of sides till they receive the honorable title of polygon, finally when the number of sides becomes so numerous that they can hardly be distinguished from a circle he is included in the circular or priestly class (the highest class of all). Abbott then states that it is the "law of nature that a male child shall have one more side than his father, so each generation rise (as a rule) one step in a scale of development and nobility." p. 12-13. However this rule does not always apply to the lower class and small angled isosceles triangles instead their angles grow wider and more equal with military and labor successes throughout generations till the a fully equal-sided triangle son is produced. When this happens he is moved to a new equilateral triangle home and is to forget about and never see the old life he new. Abbott then touches on how there are "irregulars" who enter a state of hospitals and if hopelessly irregular are the executed.
Still feel Abbott is trying to prove a point about human society and, to put it into theatre terms, how we all are "type-casting" the world's people. Perhaps even making a pun about how preps used to be called "squares".
All images and videos (excluding 1st image 1,2,3,4 circles) are all my own work.
citation for 1st image- http://cowpi.com (journal of 07/2004 time prayer and the body of Christ part 1)
