Sophie’s World (1991) by Jostein Gaarder - Fiction

3,000 years of knowledge wrapped up in a little over 500 pages

Jostein Gaarder has combined mystery-fantasy and real-world Western philosophy to create Sophie’s World. For a city dweller like myself the story’s setting feels idyllic being in a small Norwegian town close to wooded areas and lakes. The protagonist is the 14 year old student Sophie Amundsen and later we meet her eccentric philosophy teacher, Alberto Knox. The novel’s main dilemma begins early on when Sophia receives an unsigned letter containing two questions: “Who are you?” and “Where does the world come from?” She continues getting letters which contain philosophy lessons moving through time periods and people such as the ancient Greek philosophers, the Middle Ages, Rene Descartes, John Locke, Immanuel Kant, Karl Marx, and about two dozen others. Essentially, Gaarder covers the main philosophical movers and shakers of the entire Western World, covering about 3,000 years. There will be some astute readers who will berate him for leaving out some philosophers or not spending enough time on others. But Gaarder’s novel is not meant to be a textbook on Western philosophy (for something like that you could pick up Bertrand Russell’s A History of Western Philosophy).

With an adolescent protagonist I think it’s a novel meant for curious young adult readers who desire a challenging book that probes into some of life’s biggest questions. The ideas contained in it are the backbone of our Western society and more fundamentally what it means to be human. Still interested? You’ll also need to be a serious reader if you plan on finishing its 500 pages. That’s probably why Sophie’s World might appeal more to adults than teenagers. That’s at least in the United States. Remember, it’s a Norwegian novel and Gaarder was a high school philosophy teacher (I wonder if Norwegian teens are more adept than U.S. ones at comprehending philosophy?). Also, unless you’re in a U.S. high school Advanced Placement class, you probably won’t be required to read a novel more than 300 pages which sadly leaves Sophie’s World to collect dust on the teacher’s shelf. So it’s probably most often required read in university Philosophy or Humanities courses. But for the general reader if you show a bit of gumption it will definitely be an intellectually fruitful journey.

I’d estimate that Gaarder spends about 80% on the philosophy/history lessons and the remaining 20% on Sophie’s story. But these percentages are not clear cut. There are times when the philosophy/history lessons overlap with the narrative (especially near the end) and you’d have a hard time comprehending one without the other. The characters do feel a bit flat, but that does little to hamper the compelling plotline. In fact, I read the last 75 pages in one sitting.

For the general non-philosophical reader Sophie’s World will probably be the first time he/she encounters some thinkers like Democritus and Baruch Spinoza. But many will recognize names like Aristotle, Sigmund Freud, and Charles Darwin. Where Gaarder shines most is in his concise and informative summaries of these great thinkers’ ideas and theories. The chapters on the British philosopher David Hume and British scientist Charles Darwin standout as especially bright spots. When I read Hume in college his writing seemed dense and unforgiving for a freshman. However, Gaarder presents complex ideas in a comprehensible way without making you feel patronized. I understood, and therefore, appreciated Hume's ideas more. Gaarder's chapter on Darwin should be required reading before any study of evolution or natural selection. It’s informative clarity at its best under 25 pages. In the same style as Plato’s Dialogues, Gaarder presents the philosophy/history lessons in the form of conversations between Sophie and Alberto. I appreciated Sophie’s guileless probing questions, sometimes as simple as Can you explain that again? Or Can you give me an example?

In our politically jarring environment of 2020 books like Sophie’s World are more necessary than ever. For example, it doesn’t tell you how to vote, but it helps lay the foundation of how to question everything before voting. A mysterious character writes to Sophie, “Sometimes I ask myself if war could have been avoided if people had been a bit better at thinking. Perhaps the best remedy against violence would be a short course on philosophy” (p. 221). This example highlights philosophy’s implications for war. But it can pertain to almost everything. As Alberto points out to Sophie, “it has always been the case that while people were seeking answers to the ultimate questions, they have discovered clear and final solutions to many other problems. Science, research, and technology are all by-products of our philosophical reflection” (p. 463).

You would undoubtedly have a difficult time completing Sophie’s World if just the scent of philosophy repels to you. However, if you’re interested in testing the waters then it’s a promising fit. And if you're someone who shuns philosophy because it's historically been mostly written by and for old dead white guy, you'll be glad to know that you're in good company. Sophie is quick to call this out and she draws attention to women frequently (note, however, that Plato was a proponent of women philosophizing). Lastly, if you take Alberto’s lessons seriously, it can easily jockey you away from Pinterest and towards Britanicca.com searches for philosophers and histories previously unbeknownst to you. No one could end this post more eloquently than Alberto himself:

“one must always distinguish between good and bad. Some proclaim that we are

entering a new age. But everything new is not necessarily good, and not all the old

should be thrown out. That is one of the reasons I have given you this course in

philosophy. Now you have the historical background, you can orientate yourself in

life” (p. 464).

Highest Score - 5 Trophies

Writing: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

Readability: 🏆🏆🏆🏆

Argument: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

Plot: 🏆🏆🏆

Characters: 🏆🏆🏆🏆

Overall: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

*I combined the Fiction and Nonfiction categories for Sophie's World because it contains elements of both.

October 25, 2020