In-between Places: A Small Invented Inventory on Mathematics and Literature

Abstract

This paper focuses on different possible interrelations between Mathematics and Literature which were delineated by reading several literary works. It proposes, based on Umberto Eco’s and Jorge Luis Borge’s fictional taxonomies, a categorization of the distinct ways Math and literature intertwine, called in-between places by Fux. This piece of research, which considered the ideas of some Mathematics Education researchers and other literature and language researchers in its analysis, points to three categories: literature with mathematical bias, literature with mathematical terms and literature with mathematical structures. All categories encompass the six justifications discussed by this article in order to reflect on Mathematics teaching mediated by Literature, two of which will be addressed more comprehensively: teaching reading and writing as an activity that must be performed by every school course and the need to stimulate creativity in Math classes.

Keywords:
Mathematics and Literature; Reading and Writing in Math Classes; Creativity in Math Classes; In-between Places