RESULTS

The satirical Flatland was published in 1884 by the English clergyman and headmaster 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 shatters 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' theories of relativity. Stewart illuminates Abbott's numerous Victorian references, weaves in little-known biographical information about Abbott and his intellectual circle, and traces the scientific evolution of geometric forms and dimensions, right up to the current 'string theory' of nature.