- Hardcover: 272 pages
- Publisher: Perseus Books; Annotated edition edition (15 Nov 2001)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0738205419
- ISBN-13: 978-0738205410
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 19.3 x 2.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,830,709 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Annotated Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Authors
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
Review
"Stewart... is renowned for his popular science books, but Why Beauty is Truth is without a doubt the finest." Nature "Stewart, long a class act in popular maths, does not shy from presenting equations, illuminating them with imagistic explanations and sympathetic character sketches of heroes past and present." Guardian "I resorted to hiding (Why Beauty is Truth) from other members of the family until I'd finished and am confident that those on the 'waiting list' will not be disappointed. Inspirational." TLS"
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Product Description
The first-ever annotated edition of the beloved classic, beautifully illustrated and brilliantly brought to life for a new generation of readers.. Flatland is a unique, delightful satire that has charmed readers for over a century. Published in 1884 by the English clergyman and head-master Edwin A. Abbott, it is the fanciful tale of A. Square, a two-dimensional being who is whisked away by a mysterious visitor to The Land of Three Dimensions, an experience that forever alters his worldview. By contemplating the notion of dimensions beyond their own, Abbott's Victorian readers were exposed to the then-radical idea of a fourth dimension-preparing them for Einstein's spectacular theories of relativity.Like the book itself, Ian Stewart's commentary takes readers on a strange and wonderful journey. With clarity and wit, Stewart illuminates Abbott's numerous Victorian references, weaves in little-known biographical information about Abbott and his intellectual circle-elucidating Abbott's remarkable connections to H. G. Wells and the mathematician George Boole-and traces the scientific evolution of geometric forms and dimensions. In addition, Stewart provides an extensive bibliography of Abbott's work and that of Charles Howard Hinton, whose wild but ingenious speculations about the fourth dimension undoubtedly inspired Abbott's fable. Touching on such diverse topics as ancient Babylon, Karl Marx, the Indian Mutiny of 1857, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, the Gregorian calendar, Mount Everest, and phrenology, Stewart makes fascinating connections between Flatland and Edwin A. Abbott's life and times. The result is a classic to rival Abbott's own, and a book that will inspire and delight curious readers for generations to come.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
Spoken by Horatio, in William Shakespeare's Hamlet, act 1, scene 5, line 164. Hamlet has just been conversing with his father's ghost, who is now speaking from under the stage. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Spoken by Horatio, in William Shakespeare's Hamlet, act 1, scene 5, line 164. Hamlet has just been conversing with his father's ghost, who is now speaking from under the stage. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Abbott's Flatland will always remain a classical inspiration for our understanding of higher-dimensional spaces. In drawing the analogy of the way that two dimensional people understand three dimensional space, Abbott allows the reader to ponder ways of investigating higher-dimensional space without the baggage of mathematical formalism.
However as Abbott's age and background are firmly rooted in the latter half of the 19th century, it would be thought that the finer nuances alluded to by the author would pass into obscurity. Here, the ingenuity of Ian Stewart comes to the fore. Prof Stewart refreshes Abbott's text with his annotations, detailing every minuscule reference that Abbott makes in his 19th century world. The result is an informed invigoration of a classic and opens more paths to inspiration in diverse disciplines such as theology and partical physics.
The book does require at least two readings; once for the story itself to bring alive the narrative of A Square, the second to fit in the background provided by Stewart around the story. One could almost say that Stewart uses a fourth dimension of time to expand a three dimensional tale that belongs in more dimensions.
Format:Paperback
One might think all those extensive annotations could be superfluous or far off-topic. Well, in a way they are ;), but it's actually the very stuff you'd be googling sooner or later yourself - if you're into contemplation about things, that is. Which you probably are, if you already intend to buy this book.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
15 reviews
78 of 78 people found the following review helpful
a brilliant annotated version of this math geek classic
31 Mar 2002
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I first read Flatland as an undergraduate mathematics major. It was an epiphany. With spectacularly clear words and explanations Abbott related, in a first person narrative, the thoughts and experiences of A. Square as he explained his own two-dimensional world and explored others of varying dimension. After reading it, I looked at the world in a new way. It was one of the first books I ever wrote in; I was so excited with thought that I underlined, punctuated, and jotted ideas down in the margins -- breaking a lifelong habit of respecting books by treating them like sacred objects. I was grateful to Abbott for his ideas and his lucidity. Breaching biology and time, he had awakened in me a new appreciation of the aesthetics of science and mathematics. Now, here comes Ian Stewart to make this wonderful book even more interesting!
This book is a pleasure in so many ways. The quality of the paper and typesetting are exceptional, the layout is clear, the annotator is a talented writer, and the volume is generously augmented with photo reproductions and line drawings. Stewart's text is just wonderful. While the preface begins with a question: "What is Flatland and why should it be annotated?" and continues with Professor Stewart's reasoning and motivation in tackling this subject, the introduction focuses on Flatland's author, Edwin Abbott Abbott. Stewart is a fine writer and I learned a lot in both sections. But that is just an appetizer. Stewart states in the preface that his intellectual pursuit of all things Flatland led him down many paths and, taking his cue from long-time interesting thinker Martin Gardner, he lets the information flow. Annotations vary in length, from one paragraph to several pages, and cover a magnificent range of subjects, each made entertaining, informative and relevant. One would expect, and does find, mathematics explanations, but Stewart also draws intellectual connections between Abbott and his contemporaries, explains historical references and contextualizes Abbott's contributions to scholarly thought.
I learned something on every page, and enjoyed the reading of it. Stewart has produced a volume that can be compared favorably to Gardner's Annotated Alice in Wonderland, for which he expresses admiration. While this scintillating annotated version of Abbott's classic text should prove delightful for those interested in mathematics, physics, or the history of science, it will be irresistibly fascinating for any fan of Flatland.
Well done. Highly recommended.
65 of 65 people found the following review helpful
Intellectual Fun with Commentary
2 Jun 2002
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Flatland is a novel originally published in 1884 by Edwin A. Abbott. It is told from the point of view of A. Square, that four-sided resident of the titular country. The first part of the book consists of a description of what it is like to live in a two-dimensional world. The second part concerns A. Square's encounter with a sphere and his subsequent "visions" of pointland, lineland and spaceland.
The purpose of this novel is two-fold: to introduce the casual reader into the concepts of multi-dimensional spaces (i.e. what will become the concept of four dimensional space-time) and to provide social commentary on Victorian society. I cannot comment much on what he achieves in terms of opening the eyes of the Victorian reader to the ills of that society; however, I find his ability to illuminate the concepts of dimensionality extra-ordinary. As a math and physics teacher, I am always looking for ways to open my students' minds to visualizing what they are doing. Even after well over 100 years, few people have approached Abbott's clarity in helping people visualize the difference between different dimensions. One of the best examples: a square only "looks" like a square to someone who can see in three dimensions. A square itself, trapped in a plane, would see another square (or, indeed, any figure) only as a line. This leads to intriguing thoughts on what creatures who live in higher dimensions than our own see as they look at us.
Of course, the story of Flatland alone is wonderful but Stewart's annotation and commentary take the book to another level. On nearly every page, Stewart offers insight and background into the text. Unable to resist the pun: he added another dimension to the book. Having read Flatland many years ago and enjoyed it, I felt I understood the book much better this time around with Stewart's help. Anyone with an interest in math and physics should not pass up the opportunity to read this edition of Flatland.
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Combines math with magic and fun!
20 Jun 2006
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
With the Alice in Wonderland books, the late 1800s seem to have been the time for really creative mathemetical writing.
Although not as frequently read, Flatland, the Edwin Abbott Abbott story of a little square coming to understanding that higher dimensions do indeed exist outside his world is a delightful read. For those seeking to understand what life is like in other dimensions, Flatland is very comprehensible with clear writing and simple, easy to understand illustrations that help drive home Abbott's points.
Originally written with many sly references to the then existing state of British culture, Abbott's invitation to try and understand higher dimensions was also an invitation to society of his time to try to re think its views on a myriad of issues...including its openness to women in education.
In this way, Abbott converted viewing higher dimensions into both a mathematical and social challenge...points Stewart was sensitive to in his annotations and his own homage, Flatterland.
Although other editions of this work exist, the annotated Flatland is the one to buy both because of its faithful reproduction of the original and its thought provoking and helpful footnotes that give the work broader meaning.
Although not as frequently read, Flatland, the Edwin Abbott Abbott story of a little square coming to understanding that higher dimensions do indeed exist outside his world is a delightful read. For those seeking to understand what life is like in other dimensions, Flatland is very comprehensible with clear writing and simple, easy to understand illustrations that help drive home Abbott's points.
Originally written with many sly references to the then existing state of British culture, Abbott's invitation to try and understand higher dimensions was also an invitation to society of his time to try to re think its views on a myriad of issues...including its openness to women in education.
In this way, Abbott converted viewing higher dimensions into both a mathematical and social challenge...points Stewart was sensitive to in his annotations and his own homage, Flatterland.
Although other editions of this work exist, the annotated Flatland is the one to buy both because of its faithful reproduction of the original and its thought provoking and helpful footnotes that give the work broader meaning.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
