Unflattening

Sousanis argues that human reflection, especially the way humans reflect on the environment and on our own existence, bolsters the case against flatness (Location 143). He introduces the geometric figure of the vector to show how we are “separate yet connected” from the rest of the world (Location 143), and how this allows us to witness ourselves from these two distinct vantage points.

Sousanis points to unique developments in human evolution such as our thumbs and ability to stand up on two feet, arguing that these make us who we are; without them, we would become shadowy, adrift figures. Illustrations of a human figure that has cut its strings culminate in an emaciated silhouette. The next illustration shows human figures navigating a tapestry of threads as Sousanis champions philosopher Bruno Latour’s view that being emancipated “‘does not mean freed from bonds,’ but well-attached” (Location 148). Our attachments to multiple aspects of life on Earth can be powerful forces to harness in the quest to become what educational reformer John Dewey labels “positively present” (Location 151). This phrase encompasses the idea that we aren’t complete in and of ourselves but rather “emerge from the interaction of forces in motion, an association of vectors” (Location 151).