Suggestions

Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.
  • Shakespeare dark gray
    • No Fear Shakespeare Translations
    • Shakespeare Study Guides
    • Shakespeare Life & Times
    • Glossary of Shakespeare Terms
  • Literature dark gray
    • No Fear Literature Translations
    • Literature Study Guides
    • Glossary of Literary Terms
    • How to Write Literary Analysis
  • Other Subjects dark gray
    • Biography
    • Biology
    • Chemistry
    • Computer Science
    • Drama
    • Economics
    • Film
    • Health
    • History
    • Math
    • Philosophy
    • Physics
    • Poetry
    • Psychology
    • Short Stories
    • Sociology
    • US Government and Politics
  • Test Prep PLUS dark gray
    • Test Prep Lessons
    • AP® English Literature
    • AP® English Language
  • Teacher dark gray
    • SparkTeach
    • Teacher's Handbook
  • Blog
My PLUS Dashboard
  • Account Details
  • Subscription & Billing

Please wait while we process your payment

Reset Password

  • Please wait while we process your payment

    Log in Create account

    Sparknotes

  • By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.

    Don’t have an account? Subscribe now

    Step 1 of 4

    Create Your Account

    Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial. Get instant access to all the benefits of SparkNotes PLUS! Cancel within the first 7 days and you won't be charged. We'll even send you a reminder.

    • Ad-free experience
    • Study notes
    • Flashcards & Quizzes
    • AP® English Test Prep
    • Plus much more

  • Already have an account? Log in

    Step 1 of 4

    Create Your Account done

    Step 2 of 4

    Choose Your Plan

    BEST VALUE

    Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!

    Step 2 of 4

    Choose Your Plan done

    Step 3 of 4

    Add Your Payment Details

  • We're sorry, SparkNotes Plus isn't available in your country.

  • Step 3 of 4

    Add Your Payment Details done

    Step 4 of 4

    Payment Summary

    SparkNotes Plus

     Change

    US + tax

    You'll be billed only after your free trial ends.

    7-day Free Trial

    DUE NOW

    $0.00

    Total due on August 9, 2022

    This is not a valid promo code.

    Promo Code

    SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.

    Step 2 of 4

    Choose Your Plan

    Step 3 of 4

    Add Your Payment Details

    Step 4 of 4

    Payment Summary

    Suggestions

    Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.
    • My Account Icon My Account white
      • Account Details
      • Subscription & Billing
      My PLUS Dashboard
    • Shakespeare white
      • No Fear Shakespeare Translations
      • Shakespeare Study Guides
      • Shakespeare Life & Times
      • Glossary of Shakespeare Terms
    • Literature white
      • No Fear Literature Translations
      • Literature Study Guides
      • Glossary of Literary Terms
      • How to Write Literary Analysis
    • Other Subjects white
      • Biography
      • Biology
      • Chemistry
      • Computer Science
      • Drama
      • Economics
      • Film
      • Health
      • History
      • Math
      • Philosophy
      • Physics
      • Poetry
      • Psychology
      • Short Stories
      • Sociology
      • US Government and Politics
    • Test Prep PLUS white
      • Test Prep Lessons
      • AP® English Literature
      • AP® English Language
    • Teacher white
      • SparkTeach
      • Teacher's Handbook
    • Blog
    • Help

    Please wait while we process your payment

    expired-logo

    Your PLUS subscription has expired

    • We’d love to have you back! Renew your subscription to regain access to all of our exclusive, ad-free study tools.
    Renew your subscription

    Please wait while we process your payment

    expired-logo

    snpromo-logo
    • Looking for exclusive, AD-FREE study tools? Look no further!

    Sophie's World

    Jostein Gaarder

    Study Guide
    • Study Guide
    • Summary
      • Summary & Analysis
      • The Garden of Eden, The Top Hat, and The Myths
      • The Natural Philosophers, Democritus, and Fate
      • Socrates, Athens, and Plato
      • The Major's Cabin and Aristotle
      • Hellenism and The Postcards
      • Two Cultures and The Middle Ages
      • The Renaissance and The Baroque
      • Descartes, Spinoza, and Locke
      • Hume, Berkeley, and Bjerkely
      • The Enlightenment and Kant
      • Romanticism and Hegel
      • Kierkegaard and Marx
      • Darwin and Freud
      • Our Own Time and The Garden Party
      • Counterpoint and The Big Bang
      • Full Book
      • Full Book Summary
      • Key Facts
    • Characters
      • Character List
      • Sophie
      • Alberto
      • Hilde
      • Albert Knag
    • Literary Devices
      • Themes
      • Symbols
      • Motifs
    • Quotes
      • Important Quotes Explained
    • Quick Quizzes
      • Book
      • Full Book Quiz
      • The Garden of Eden, The Top Hat, and The Myths
      • The Natural Philosophers, Democritus, and Fate
      • Socrates, Athens, and Plato
      • The Major's Cabin and Aristotle
      • Hellenism and The Postcards
      • Two Cultures and The Middle Ages
      • The Renaissance and The Baroque
      • Descartes, Spinoza, and Locke
      • Hume, Berkeley, and Bjerkely
      • The Enlightenment and Kant
      • Romanticism and Hegel
      • Kierkegaard and Marx
      • Darwin and Freud
      • Our Own Time and The Garden Party
      • Counterpoint and The Big Bang
        • More
        • Context
        • Plot Overview
        • Character List
        • Analysis of Major Characters
        • Themes, Motifs, and Symbols
        • Essays
          • Mini Essays
          • Suggested Essay Topics
        • Further Study
          • Suggestions for Further Reading
          • Jostein Gaarder and Sophie's World Background

        Please wait while we process your payment

        snplus-logo

        Unlock your FREE SparkNotes PLUS trial!

        Unlock your FREE Trial!

        Sign up and get instant access to bookmarks.
        • Ad-Free experience
        • Easy-to-access study notes
        • Flashcards & Quizzes
        • AP® English test prep
        • Plus much more
        Already have an account? Log in
        Characters

        Character List

        Characters Character List
        • Sophie Amundsen

          Sophie is the protagonist of Sophie's World. She is an inquisitive and spirited fourteen year old who learns just before turning fifteen that her life is the invention of Albert Knag. Sophie learns this and many other things from Alberto Knox, the philosopher who Albert Knag invented as her teacher. Sophie does not just learn from Alberto; she also questions him and shows that she has ideas of her own to implement. By the end of the story Sophie shows that she is a philosopher, because she has the ability to look at things from a different perspective and she can act on what she thinks. Sophie is friendly but not all that social. She is more given to introspection than chatting. In fact, Sophie almost forgets about her one good friend, Joanna, when she starts learning about philosophy. Sophie is critical, and she does not spare those she cares about. Her mother has to listen to much criticism from Sophie throughout the book, and Joanna and Alberto also hear a fair share. Sophie is opinionated and she is interested in saying only what she thinks.

        • Alberto Knox

          Sophie's teacher, Alberto Knox represents the ideal philosopher. He is never quick to judge and he always thinks about what he is doing. Alberto believes passionately in philosophy, since it helps him understand that his existence is due to the mind of Albert Knag. Alberto is an excellent teacher because he forces Sophie to think things out on her own and does not make things easy for her but he also cares about her and wants her to learn.

        • Hilde Møller Knag

          Hilde is Albert Knag's daughter and Sophie and Alberto are created for her amusement. Like Sophie, she is a deep thinker, and the philosophy in the book intrigues her deeply. Hilde is also extremely compassionate, and she feels for Sophie and Alberto while her father plays with their lives. She is independent, and proves it by giving her father a taste of his own medicine during his return from Lebanon. Hilde thinks things through but also trusts her instincts over her reason sometimes, and her instinct is what tells her that Sophie actually exists.

        • Albert Knag

          Hilde's father, Albert Knag is the brains behind Sophie and Alberto's existence. He creates them as a birthday gift for his daughter, whom he loves deeply. Albert Knag has an ironic sense of humor and cares very much about the world. He works for the UN and he wants people to live in peace and harmony. Albert also very much wants his daughter to see the world (and the universe) as the special place that it is. He wants her to learn about philosophy so that she will be able to think and live in the way that he thinks is proper. Like Alberto, he is a philosopher at heart, and the world itself is enough entertainment for him.

          Read an in-depth analysis of Albert Knag .

        • Mother

          Sophie's mother is one of the funnier characters in the book because she provides a foil for Sophie's philosophical adventures. Mrs. Amundsen thinks that her daughter is losing her mind when she starts spouting off about the differences between humans and animals and how thinking makes one a human being. Sadly, she also represents those who do not think in the world, a population that, Alberto warns Sophie, includes most of the people.

        • Joanna

          Joanna is Sophie's best friend and she is loyal and friendly, although she does not think about things in the same way that Sophie does. But Joanna also will not turn away from philosophy in the same way that Sophie's mother does. So Joanna shows some promise. Perhaps if she had a philosophy course she would progress in the same way that Sophie did.

        • Mom

          Hilde's mother is a very minor character in the book. The relationship between Hilde and her father is much more central, but Hilde mother often provides a stabilizing influence in her daughter's life. We do not know how deep of a thinker she is, but it is clear that she loves her husband and her daughter very much.

        • Dad

          Sophie's father is hardly mentioned throughout the book. He sends his daughter a postcard early on and it is clear that he cares for her, but his work keeps him away from home for most of the year.

        • Hermes

          Hermes is Alberto's dog who works as a messenger, bringing Sophie the lectures on philosophy and later taking her to Alberto. Albert Knag uses Hermes to wish Hilde happy birthday and help ruin the continuity of Sophie's life.

        • Jeremy

          Jeremy is the boy who Joanna begins passionately kissing at the end of the garden party. Sophie invites him because she knows that Joanna wants him at the party.

        Next section Sophie
        Test your knowledge

        Take the Character List Quick Quiz

        Take a study break

        Every Shakespeare Play Summed Up in a Single Sentence

        Take a study break

        The 7 Most Embarrassing Proposals in Literature

        Did you know you can highlight text to take a note? x

        Popular pages: Sophie's World

        • Sophie: Character Analysis CHARACTERS

        • Important Quotations Explained QUOTES

        • Themes LITERARY DEVICES

        • Review Quiz FURTHER STUDY

        Take a Study Break

        • Every Shakespeare Play Summed Up in a Single Sentence

        • The 7 Most Embarrassing Proposals in Literature

        • The 6 Best and Worst TV Show Adaptations of Books

        • QUIZ: Which Greek God Are You?

        Sign up for our latest news and updates!
        By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. You can view our Privacy Policy here. Unsubscribe from our emails at any time.

        SparkNotes—the stress-free way to a better GPA

        • Popular
        • No Fear Shakespeare
        • Literature Guides
        • Other Subjects
        • Blog
        • Teacher’s Handbook
        • SparkNotes PLUS
        • Why choose PLUS?
        • Sign Up
        • Log In
        • PLUS Help
        • More
        • Help
        • How to Cite SparkNotes
        • How to Write Literary Analysis
        • About
        • Contact Us
        • Advertise

        Copyright © SparkNotes LLC

        • Terms of Use
        • |
        • Privacy
        • |
        • Cookie Policy
        • |
        • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
               
        >