Cecilia Strøm’s Reviews > The Magic Mountain > Status Update

I laughed when I read this line ☺️
Frau Støhr: «..it’s like the tourment of Tantalus: you shove and shove, and think you are getting to the top.»
Settembrini: «Ah, how delightful of you, to give poor old Tantalus a new job, and let him roll the stone uphill for a change. I call that true benevolence..»

Wondering if Mann has read Flatland by Edwin Abbott. At this time, early 1900’s, Flatland was probably mostly read by mathematicians, but perhaps Mann has read it. He uses the term flatlanders to describe the people both down below, but also as a representation of a lower dimension of human consciousness, just like Abbott does.