#flatland rants

[acrossdimension]

Remember folks‚ if you draw a yellow sphere your a racist by @Rjalker logic

[bornwholocker]

Reading flatland and obviously Bill’s home dimension and flatland aren’t exactly the same, but like. Since we don’t know which parts are different I’m just thinking. This is really unorganized and all over the place and probably doesn’t make any sense but

In flatland, it takes a LOT of planning for an equilateral triangle to be born. I’m talking like generations of interbreeding and methods for the fathering isosceles to get as close to equilateral as possible. It’s a huge deal. When an equilateral is created, it’s celebrated by pretty much everyone (for a miriad of different reasons but I won’t get into that). And being “irregular” in any respect is one of the worst things you can be. If you don’t “fix” your irregularity enough, you’re executed.

So imagine Bill’s family working their triangular asses off to have an equilateral kid, to give him a better life, and when they finally do it, he’s got that eye. From what we’ve seen of his parents, they seem to have taken care of him as best they could, but again, it’s been a whole ordeal just to have him, involving the whole community and family, and he came out wrong.

I imagine that’s probably why his parents took him to see the doctor and drink the “juice” that messed with his vision. They thought they were doing what was best for him. They didn’t blame him for his eye, didn’t hate him for it, but they felt the need to fix him, either to please their families or even just bring him to their own standards. The idea of irregularity being wrong is seen as natural and obvious, so they wouldn’t find an issue with trying to change him.

Another thing about flatland is that the mention of any third dimension or any idea close to that is pretty much criminal. (Spoilers i guess) The narrator of the story, a square who saw the third dimension for himself, is eventually locked away for talking about it.

So Bill was supposed to be a sort of miracle baby, I guess is the best way to put it. And when he came out just slightly but irreparably wrong, it was devastating. And then he starts spouting about 3D and the stars and he just wants people to understand, to see that it’s not dangerous, that it’s beautiful. But his parents don’t want him to get imprisoned or worse, so they try to keep him quiet. They give him his juice and his silly straws and wave away any ideas about the third dimension.

Bill was born a disappointment, one of the lowest life forms imaginable, and the only way he was gonna get anywhere in life was by losing his stars forever. He was told that the thing right in front of him wasn’t real, that he should stop talking about it, that he could get in trouble. So he had to show everyone that he was right. He would be a hero! He would be the kid who finally discovered where the light came from, something no scientist had ever gotten close to figuring out!

But in the end his parents were right. It was too dangerous. God bill tragic backstory is so ougrhhhhj grabs alex hirsch by the shoulders and shakes him

[onei-ro-piss]

Edwin A. Abbott gave Flatland an unreliable narrator that describes his sexist, classist, racist society with pride in terms of “I am a Square. I have 4 sides. the more angles and sides you have, the better you are as a person. Also you can't change this even though the people in power will encourage you to try,” and he wrote this for Victorian societies in 1884 to the tune of “THIS IS WHAT YOU SOUND LIKE. THIS IS HOW STUPID YOU SOUND.

"You claim to know intimately the nature of every being around you, yet you know nothing. You call yourself a square despite the fact you’ve never seen one! YOU'VE NEVER ACTUALLY SEEN A SQUARE.”

In the book, A Square goes down a rabbit hole of thought until eventually drawing the conclusion that women should be educated. It is after this that A Sphere chooses to teach him about the 3rd dimension, and says it's because A Square “seemed a man of sense.” A Sphere mentions the importance of love and art, something A Square thinks is ridiculous because "love" is for women, and "art" is for socialists I mean chromatists. A Square never really does get it though. He fails to explain the 3rd dimension to his fellow Flatlanders, partly due to comedically terrible political timing, largely due to the fact A Square has always been prone to understanding only what is directly in front of him. He lives out the rest of his days in prison.

And then 123 years after the book was published, Ladd Ehlinger (an incredibly reactionary misogynist and racist) makes an adaptation of the book where he voices the main character. He releases a movie that pathetically mimes the social commentary of the original, and now lives out his days as a sad, angry man crying on YouTube about leftists. He's lived out the plot of Flatland, playing an even worse version of A Square's role. The only thing that's missing is getting sent to jail and that’s bc unlike A Square, Ladd Ehlinger doesn't experience oppression of any kind. 

However, exactly like A Square, he didn't get it. He didn't fucking get it.

[just-a-toast]

Book Of Bill Spoilers‼️

Rant about Bill’s Original dimension

OKAY I REALLY NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS BECAUSE IT HASENT LEFT MY MIND

Bill’s world is COMPLETELY DOGSHIT AND OPPRESSED HIM IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE

We know that Bill’s world is very similar to Edwin Abbott’s Flatland, as said in the Bill Cipher AMA and the picture of flatland in the book if bill on the chapter cover of his origins.

So we can assume that the same laws and way of life that exists in flatland also apply to Bill’s dimension.

First of all, Bill could be canonically adopted.

Just to give a little background, in flatland, if a shape has a son (only men are shapes, women are lines) that shape gains one side. (A square has a son, it’s a pentagon and etc). Isosceles triangles that are deemed acceptable to have kids don’t follow this rule. The isosceles triangle would correct one of its angles by a half a degree, continuing until they become an equilateral triangle. This is their whole purpose so that they can eventually have a triangle start a new line of polygons that can make circles.

In Flatland, isosceles are deemed lower in society than polygons and are less educated than polygons. So once an isosceles triangle has a equilateral child, they are IMMEDIATELY TAKEN AWAY FROM THEIR FAMILY AND PUT WITH A POLYGON FAMILY SO THEY CAN BE INTEGRATED INTO A “NORMAL” SOCIETY AND NOT CORRUPTED BY THE ISOSCELES.

Not only is Bill’s existence really rare and takes a lot of time and generations, he is immediately taken away from his family and put in a family that are higher on the social latter than him. This could EASILY lead to his family not respecting him in any way. (Really proves what Hirsch said in one of his Q&A)

Another thing that royally fucks him over is his mutation to see the third dimension

He was born with mutation that if he even TALKED about it he would be EXECUTED. A square (the protagonist of Flatland) was only sent to jail for life but since Bill is a triangle he would have easily been executed, no questions asked. The flatland government loves executing people in the book. That’s like if a person was color blind and said the sky was grey they would be killed.

So Bill’s vision is illegal, he’s the lowest on the social chain, in a family that is higher socially and could easily discriminate against him. What else could his family do?

FORCEFULLY MEDICATE HIM WITHOUT HIM KNOWING.

Yeah on the silly straw page the codes tell us that Bill when he was younger was taken to the eye doctor by his family and got a sort of prescription that made the 3rd dimension go away. We don’t know how long he didn’t know but we can assume it was for a while.

“The Doctor says Three sips a day Will make the visions Go away”

“Eye doctor of a different kind Who wants to make his patient blind”

He was literally forced to be normal.

And to get off track a little, I understand that “make his patient go blind” means ‘blind from the truth’ but what if they actually tried to make him go blind so he couldn’t see the third dimension anymore?? DO YOU REALIZE HOW FUCKED UP THAT IS?? BILL IS BASICALLY THE GYPSY ROSE OF HIS UNIVERSE

Back on track we also need to talk about how Bill DESPISED being normal.

We know that Bill is a wild person, always looking to have fun, loves the weird things in life! But in his world, everyone hated things that were not socially acceptable. In his universe, his socially assigned purpose in life was to get a family and have kids. Like I said, everyone wants to have kids in his universe that eventually become circles (the highest on the social latter). Bill would NEVER want to have such a boring and meaningless life! For his only purpose was to continue a line of oppression and meaningless things like “social status”. But his world would probably force him to have kids or else throw him in jail.

Really explains why he said no one has a purpose, and that you can make your own, because he made his own.

Also his differences caused him to possibly get bullied in school. This is implied from his description of his pyrokenesis power

There’s a bunch of reasons why he would want to destroy his dimension, But from what we know, it was completely by accident. Now we don’t know if he was lying, but from his origins page and the other evidence we know that it was at least partially on accident or something that so out of control that it destroyed his whole dimension. He wanted to prove everyone wrong by showing them the beautiful stars he saw, but ended up killing them instead.

And he regrets it.

He had SO MANY reasons to hate his dimension and destroy it without a second thought, but he misses it, misses his family, his people. They haunt him.

None of this trauma excuses anything he does in the future, but the fact that he misses such a horrible place that treated him terribly to where he literally goes insane from guilt and self hatred is truly tragic.

If anyone has anything to add to the “shitty things that happened to Bill in his universe” feel free to add!

[bmxpotato]

Pulled one of my midschool flatland rigs down from the rafters in the basement today, put some fresh goodies on it and tuned it up, and practiced Decades in the driveway for a little bit. Surprised about feeling a little better today...

2003 Haro M6 Master

[waxdream]

Trigger warning - adoption, suicide, trauma, objectification.

I need to talk about adoption in Flatland. I'm adopted, so the details of this part of the story are a bit hazy due to dissociation. But like, Abbott has so many little points in his book that it impresses me. I can't tell if he did it on purpose, but if he did, damn am I impressed.

I went to the foundling museum in London a few years ago. I cried a lot, seeing the stolen items, and the exhibition of 'adoptees/orphans/fosterlings in comic books' that was downstairs. That was my favourite museum exhibition ever. My item I had from my birth mother is a candle that sits on my shelf. It's blue, and I didn't know what it was for a long long time, until one day I was about to throw it away. Luckily, I asked my adoptive mother if she wanted it, and she told me what it was. I almost threw part of my history away.

Which leads me into flatland, and the equilateral triangles. A class of adoptees. The only adoptions mentioned in the book are forced apon triangle families by the state for 'angular purity', and in order to give higher class people with an inability to have children the chance to adopt. In a modern context, I would take this as a scathing read of the adoption system. Only lower class, male children with desireable qualities are eligible for this kind of class crossing adoption, and the birth family celebrate it. The lower class is indoctrinated into thinking that 'this is for the best'.

In the UK at the time of my adoption, I've been told the desirable child was a white baby girl with no obvious disabilities, blonde hair and blue eyes. My foster carers were ineligible to adopt me, and the cynic in me believes this was because I was considered an object with 'desireable' qualities. The shadow court in my mind says 'it could have made some rich middle class family very happy' when I'm feeling grumpy and objectified. Luckily, a charity helped fund my foster (now adoptive) family's court battle, and a law change in the second year of it allowed them to win. I got lucky.

I see a lot of parallels between my own adoption and the adoptions in Flatland. People saying 'it's for the best', who don't realise that many adoptions take place because poor, mentally ill and young people can't take care of children because of lack of support and money. The scalene triangles in Flatland could have raised the equilateral merchant class, given enough resources and better schooling. Just like how A square is able to Tutor his grandson Hex - a lawyer teaching someone of a higher class skills he himself does not necessarily need to know.

I can't help but think about how those trinkets didn't stay with the foundlings who lived in that house. How I almost threw my candle away. The triangles have the physical reminder of their shape, and yet still, they are told they are different. They are regular, not like those other triangles, "you're one of us, you always have been", a square father might say to his new son. "We deserve to have you". And then, when the triangle grows up, and his wife (who's own father was a square) gives birth to an irregular triangle, the filth of that triangle's DNA is shown once again, despite the outward appearence of regularity. That's what my own adoption feels like. I always waited to be revealed for the imposter that I was. But I wonder if in a way that feels cathartic for them - like the immense relief I felt when my adoptive mother saved my candle from the trash. It's proof that your adoption exists, that you exist as a complex, multifaceted shape.

I wonder if the pressure of being regular was removed from that man's shoulders when his son was not born a square, but a triangle. Maybe his wife divorced him and he remarries within his original class - a safer, more understand place. Is that a happy ending? Is there a happy ending for adoptees? I never used to think there was. I used to think my life would end soon. Not today but tomorrow, or other similar things I'd tell myself. "I'd be content if I died today" would be said often by the regular triangle.

I wanted to be a hexagon when I thought about what shape I'd be. But no, the humble equilateral triangle is for me. He was not born a girl like I was. But perhaps they're also non binary like me.

Noone is born thinking they are tainted. You're taught that by other people. The regular triangle is told to their face they are normal, and nothing is wrong, that their adoption never affected them. When the regular triangle realised they're trans and autistic, and had that validated, that's when they felt like a real shape. Not a doll. Not an object. I still feel tainted sometimes. It's hard not to when society teaches you your DNA is wrong. And sadly, I think that's a feeling so so many of us feel - adoptees and non adoptees alike.

Your DNA is not wrong. That's a lie. It's a dangerous lie that permeates modern society, not out in the open but under covers. Every time someone says 'it's not the same' in regards to adoption, it's a perpetuation of that lie.

If your feelings are that adoption as lesser, you need to seriously examine your mindset. Because it's a mindset that holds DNA as sacred, as important. And having that mindset is something that easily divides us as a people - it's giving an inch. What's important is who we are, our life experiences, the things that make us different from each other and the points in our lives that shape us. Society shapes us. Racism and patriarchy and homophobia and ableism - these negatives do shape us. DNA has a place in who we are too, but my point is that there's so much more to it than that. The friends we discover, the things we learn, growing as people, the beauty in the world.

And I had to learn that the hard way, because the only thing that society teaches adoptees is that they're replacements. Second best. Whatever other words you have for 'btech birth kid'. Just know, any fellow adoptees, that none of that is true.

I'm happy to answer questions, because I doubt my point is coming across as well as I wanted. The triangles have got me feeling sad, and I haven't even researched phrenology yet. To clarify all my points, adoption feels sucky, racism is awful, you are more than just what society tells you you are, I am the triangle (apart from all the marriage stuff - replace that part with learning I'm trans and autistic, it serves the same purpose in my narrative).

[ciphercalamitiez]

im sorry

[irregularbillcipher]

thinking about my friend's reaction years ago when i made them aware of the axolotl poem

[theautismgoblin]

Meet Rae and Thersa, Bill's (and Liam's) two moms!

Rae is an almost perfect and Thersa is an isosceles..

Rae works at a Pline factory, she's much more outgoing and fun, she tends to be a go getter too.

Thersa is a construction worker, she tends to be more aloof and quiet... But she loves both her boy and wife dearly (all platonically)..

Did I forget to mention, Thersa and Rae might be married but they aren't in love. They married and had kids together so it wouldn't have to be with either someone they didn't know or like. So they were like, we could be bestie wives!!!

This is part of why Bill didn't think romantic love existed.

[acrossdimension]

That will just turn the shippers into Redditor or worst Twitter users 😱

if you're feeling betrayed and confused by the revelation that A Square and the Sphere are not in a relationship in the original book, you should take that up with the people who are completely misrepresenting the book and ask them why they're doing nothing but memeing about shape yaoi instead of talking about a single that actually happens in the original story.

Someday people will learn that lying to people about what happens in a book accomplishes nothing but making the people you lied to feel betrayed when they find out the truth.

[acrossdimension]

When you supported the community for years but disagree with Rjalker once

[wistologic]

i think that for the smallest of seconds— they really did see the stars.

if only for a moment, before everything fell down.

design/flatland ranting vv

seen a lot of ppl drawing bill’s parents as they’d be in the flatland movie, but none for ehlinger’s film!! so i thought id give it a try. i stole the eye design from the movie tho lolol

i think it def more likely they were more similar to the movie, considering it seems euclydia acts as a sidescroller… so when bill tilted it, they all just fell off into the stars as opposed to the gory option of their insides falling out.

personally i like the idea that the film is closer to form though! i love the concept that we, as 3d beings, could see their insides, just as a 4d being could see ours

[acrossdimension]

I respect your opinion‚ at first I wasn't against the debates it led to more people seeing flatland in there own way. But now you have people literal calling others racist because of they disagreements and that to me is ridiculous

I'm going to be brutally honest here! I'm very apprehensive about posting this tbh... </3

(Please read everything! It's okay not to agree with me on certain points!)

I love Flatland, both the book and the adaptations, and I don't think people should deprive themselves of seeing/liking one of the adaptations because the creator is extremely problematic.

That is why piracy exists!!!

Just because we like the work doesn't mean we support the creator, but it's still very important to spread to new people in the fandom about the things the person did.

In my case, I downloaded the 2007 adaptation so I wouldn't give any money or views to the creator, and I recommend that everyone do that, or see an older upload.

And yes, I recognize that the 2007 film really fails A LOT to show the social criticism of the book for obvious reasons, but in my opinion it's a good movie, it's just not a good adaptation.

So yeah, PIRATE THE FLATLAND 2007 FILM AND BLOCK FILMLADD, BUT ALSO SPREAD TO NEW PEOPLE IN THE FANDOM ABOUT THE THINGS HE DID!!!

AND READ THE BOOK TOO!!!

I really don't want to make anyone sad or upset with me here! I really like this fandom even though I just got in at 1 month or 2 and I just wanted to show my opinion. :)

[twptwp]

Flatland 2007

Unfortunately I do like the 2007 movie adaptation of Flatland, I've read the original book and like it more I certainly reccomend it! But the visual design in Flatland 2007 is awfully appealing to me. I wanted to draw some art of these designs, I may draw more, I may even create my own adaptations. But on the topic:

The guy who made the 2007 adaptation is a huge butt. Racist, mysoginist, incredibly ironic considering Abbott the creator of the Flatland book from all the way back in Victorian times believed in womans rights and helped women get educations. Abbott was a pretty progressive guy and Flatland was written as a satire criticising the strict and cruel norms of the time.

Which brings me to Ladd Ehlinger, the creator of the 2007 movie. I must wonder how absolutely dense must one be to create a movie adaptation of one of Abbott's works and proceed to be the very kind of person Abbott was producing satire against?

Luckily Abbott's messages can still be just about seen in the movie albeit tainted and watered down quite a bit. It's all deeply ironic

Rant over. The 2007 movie is as old as me and Ladd Ehlinger recieves no financial benefit from the movie as it is completely free to watch so I don't think drawing art of it is necessarily bad. Just do be aware of the kind of person at hand and be critical of the media. If you wish for more information regarding this things you can look at @ rjalker blog. Thank you for reading.

[ciphercalamitiez]

JUST BECAUDE I CANT FIND THE FUCKING BIDEO AGAIN

to that one tame impala video and flatland characters

thank you very fucking much because Everytime i listen to tame impalas songs I think of a sphere

[irregularbillcipher]

something funny about that flatland film is that because i submitted it as one of my college finals, it was part of an art show at a relatively prestigious art college, and i had a fifteen minute recorded interview where two very distinguished art professors/admin asked me about my film and then had to listen to me ramble about how um the character design inspiration? yeah! yeah i definitely had some solid inspirations and yeah it DOES remind me of kandinsky too but actually uh... so there's this cartoon that was on disney called gravity falls and--