Sophie's World

Consider each philosopher discussed in Sophie’s World. Choose a philosopher to account their life as well as analyze, critique, and add to the philosophical ideas they proposed.

Alberto Knox occasionally acknowledges the near absence of women and their ideas in the history of philosophy. How do you think philosophy, or history itself, would have been different if women were given equal opportunity to become philosophers?

There is a consistent sense of mystery in Sophie’s World that includes the writer himself, Hilde and her father, the supernatural events, and the philosophical questions posed by Alberto. Why do you think the author chose to frame a guide to philosophy as a mystery novel, and how did the mysteries connect to the ideas Alberto presented throughout?

Throughout Sophie’s World, there is a constant blending of realities, thoughts, emotions, and time. What kind of statement is the author trying to make about the nature of reality through these intermingling occurrences, and how do the two realities simultaneously connect to the world of philosophy?

What is the role of free will in the novel, and how does the author lead up to this concept and the overall employment of it by Sophie and Alberto to escape the mind of the major?

The Baroque period called life a play, and Berkeley suggested the mind of God was all that existed. Romantic philosophers expanded on this by calling it a divine ego or world soul. How are these ideas illustrated through Gaarder’s employment of worlds inside worlds, and how does the plot slowly build up to the truth that Alberto, Sophie, the major, and possibly even Gaarder, are all figments of someone else’s imagination?

What does Alberto mean by searching for a white crow, and why is this a key characteristic of all philosophers?

Sophie and Alberto are of vastly different ages and form an unlikely and unconventional bond. Why did the author choose to create this stark contrast, and how do their ages influence their views on the historical and philosophical ideas presented and their relationship with each other?