ADVANCED THEORY: Literature and And

[thepersiannadir.livejournal.com]

We will be having a formal discussion (graded) next week evaluating the value of not only incorporating math into a piece of fiction, but of using it as the main structure of the story. Basically, is math a worthwhile subject matter OUTSIDE of the study of math, and how far does that interest go? For this particular seminar, digressions from the question will be allowed if we find a topic of higher intrigue. Grades are determined by relevance and groundedness of an idea, but also for originality. You must comment once during the discussion to recieve a grade (this may go beyond today), and the more you comment the more likely of a better grade (as long as they are all GOOD comments). I will not be participating, so you must propell the discussion on your own. Use Flatland as your primary source, but your own opinions and proof from other works is acceptable.

Sir Nadir Khan

Comments

[egyptianlove.livejournal.com]

Evelyn was listening to the lecture and taking notes on what was being said.

"Math and numbers are a great deal of what every society is built upon."

[lady-jessica-bg.livejournal.com]

Of course, it cannot stand alone. Words play an important part as well. Math gives structure to words, and words give meaning to math.

[moonstruck-yuki.livejournal.com]

I find that one of the elements of Flatland that made mathematical symbology so useful was that mathematical metaphor is very clearcut and accessible to all audiences. There isn't any ambiguity to the definition of a square. We all can see one and recognise one. However, Flatland takes this easily identifiable common ground to illustrate a concept that we would normally feel is beyond us, in a way that we can understand. *smiles sheepishly*