Knowledge and Truth vs. Dogma Theme Analysis

The second half of Flatland is particularly invested in the search for knowledge and truth. After A Square learns of a higher three-dimensional world, he gains a thirst to discover and understand worlds of four, five, and even six dimensions. Part 1 of the book intricately describes what is taken to be truth in Flatland. However, the exploration of other dimensional worlds in Part 2 immediately exposes how limited that knowledge really is, and, in particular, how oppressive those “truths” are. Therefore, Abbott makes explicit distinctions between knowledge and truth and dogma.

The book presents society’s prescribed truths (its dogma) as oppressive and irrational, and as existing only to preserve hierarchies of power. In Flatland, the “laws of nature” are defined by those in power as a means of sustaining the status quo. The idea of “Nature” is particularly restricting because it does not allow doubt, and basically proclaims that “it is what it is.” For example, A Square describes one law of nature that dictates that every male child will have one more side than his father had. Apparently, however, this rule does not apply to everyone. In fact, this law excludes the isosceles triangles altogether. The arbitrariness of how and who this rule applies to exemplifies the power of those in the higher classes to control knowledge and keep the weak eternally on the bottom rungs of the social ladder. The circles, who are the leaders of Flatland, do not tolerate any person who makes public mention of other worlds and newer knowledge. Thus, at the beginning of every millennium, the Grand Council meets to imprison or execute any “ill-intentioned persons pretending to have received revelation from another World.” In the novella, A Square’s Brother is arrested for simply having witnessed the Sphere’s act of revelation, and A Square himself has been imprisoned for 7 years when he writes Flatland.

The book presents knowledge as having the potential to fight dogma. At the same time, it shows true knowledge as, by definition, never being more than partial. Put another way, it is not necessarily knowledge itself that can combat dogma, but rather the curiosity and open-mindedness that makes A Square such a devoted seeker of knowledge that truly threatens dogma. Knowledge, unlike dogma, is about seeking—A Square seeks knowledge by being curious, open-minded, and smart. Plus, he is willing to defy the oppressive laws that the circles have put in place. In contrast to the inhabitants of Pointland, Lineland, and Spaceland, A Square is open to accepting the unfamiliar concept of the third dimension because he is humble enough to consider a world beyond his own. Also consider how A Square’s Grandson insightfully devises the concept of “three-to-the-third,” but then ends up denying it in the face of dogma. His precocious vision first stems largely from his innocence and humility, since he is not fully aware of his hexagonal social status. However, A Square’s grandson’s potential to gain knowledge is squashed when the Council begins proclaiming their resolution to punish any “revelators”. The grandson is smart enough to understand that he must not make such dangerous claims about mathematical theories that deviate from the prescribed truths in Flatland. Therefore, despite A Square’s efforts to educate his grandson, his grandson has accepted the position of remaining complacent and ignorant to higher truths.

The pursuit of knowledge is ultimately presented in the book as an effort to piece together Truth. This effort is shown as never entirely achievable—A Square can never fully understand the “truth” of multiple dimensions—but the book shows that the pursuit itself is valuable. A Square’s humility and open-mindedness are presented in the book as superior to the priest’s desire to hold and maintain power at all costs, and the book makes clear that A Square’s values are a direct result of his devotion to pursuit of a truth that he can never fully understand or articulate. The broader implication here is clear: that just as A Square’s humble pursuit of an impossible-to-comprehend truth offers him a kind of salvation, so will humans’ pursuit to understand and connect with a God who is beyond their ability to comprehend bring them closer to the divine. Flatland pulls no punches in its depiction of the effort that those in power will go to in order to enforce dogma and maintain their own power, nor does it suggest that such efforts will be unsuccessful (they are clearly successful with A Square’s grandson, after all). But nonetheless, through A Square’s devotion to the truth, Flatland asserts that the quest for truth and the divine is a vital necessity for both personal fulfillment and morality.