There's an old proverb that says, "Seeing is believing." Indeed, it is our perspective of the world that guides how we react, why we conform, and ultimately, what we believe. When placed in different perspectives, it is not always easy to accept or even understand what we're trying to be shown. That is why the story, Flatland, is so ironic. Every person in his or her respective reality is so firmly woven into the system of beliefs of their society that they cannot fathom otherwise. It is the ability to let that system go that Edwin Abbott so cleverly illustrates for us, creating not only a world where perspective is the heart of life, but where it's importance determines everything from social status to what gender a person is.

One of the great ironies of the novel, Flatland, is the fact that in each reality - Lineland, Flatland...