Sofies verden is a 1991 novel by norwegian writer jostein gaarder. The best philosophy books of all time updated for 2021. Revised 2016 edition, fully illustrated crown quarto. Sophie begins to read alberto s main letter, philosopher and scientist.
This is a book recommendation and some deep questions session. It is a pageturning adventure as well as a history of western philosophy. If you share an interest in philosophy this is a book surely recommended. Aristotle was a good student, but he disagreed with plato about the idea of forms, arguing that plato was neglecting the concrete realities of the world in favor of the moreabstract world of ideas. This was my very first indepth reading on philosophy. Newsweek terrifically entertaining and imaginative. Some of the books on this site may contain characterizations or illustrations that are culturally insensitive or inaccurate. Edited by sophie lanielmusitelli, thomas constantinesco. It has been translated into 60 languages and has sold over 40 million copies. Dec 05, 1991 sophie s world is a 1991 novel by norwegian writer jostein gaarder. Books a pageturning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of western thought.
Aristotle, the letter begins, was a pupil of plato. Published in 1991, the book was a resounding success selling millions of copies and being translated into over 50 different languages the original book was written in gaarders native norwegian. From wikipedia, the free encyclopedia sophie bosede oluwole may 12, 1935 23 december 2018 was an african philosopher. They also have a guide for navigating tough conversations. As the book moves along, sophie amundsen, a teenaged girl, learns important lessons in the history of western philosophy from her teacher, alberto knox. Sophie founded her company and wellness brand, philosophie, with the goal of making it easier, more inspiring, and more delicious to attain optimal health and. Sophie s mother is one of the funnier characters in the book because she provides a foil for sophie s philosophical adventures. It follows sophie amundsen, a norwegian teenager who is introduced to the history of philosophy by alberto knox, a middleaged philosopher.
Sophies world book johnson county library bibliocommons. Sophie s world is not a simple novel, but a beautiful combo of literature and philosophy. Here is an excerpt from a reader about his experience reading sophie. Apr 22, 2020 sophies world by jostein gaarder is an english novel. The first impulse that sophie experiences when she feels angry is the desire to take her anger out on the world. Jostein gaarder is the eclectically creative author of the best selling novel, sophies world. Sophies world is, as the full title suggests, a novel about the history of philosophy. Sophies world sophie amundsen is fourteen years old when the book begins, living in norway. Jun 17, 2015 doi link for romanticism and philosophy. Set in the late 1940s, the novel is narrated by stingo, a young southern writer who. The letter promises to go oververy quicklythe major changes in philosophy, from the ancient greeks up to the present day.
Sophies choice, novel by william styron, published in 1979, that examines the historical, moral, and psychological ramifications of the holocaust through the tragic life of a roman catholic survivor of auschwitz. John fisher college editor, and is on the editorial board of philosophy now magazine. I wasnt particularly interested in the story as such. The book has one of the strangest stories you would have read. Sophie oluwole was a pioneering figure in african philosophy and the first person in her country, nigeria, to gain a phd in the subject. The english translation was published in 1995, and the book was reported to be the bestselling book in the world in that year. Not adequate if you are looking for an advanced philosophy book. A novel about the history of philosophy by jostein gaarder with a free trial.
Madeleine lengle about the author jostein gaarder, an awardwinning novelist and shortfiction writer, was born in 1952 in oslo, norway. Every day, a letter comes to her mailbox that contains a few questions and then later in the day a package comes with some typed pages describing the ideas of a philosopher who dealt with the issues raised by the questions. The defining theme of sophies world is, pretty clearly, philosophy. This is a great book, a mustread i should say for anyone who is starting up with philosophy. She is an inquisitive and spirited fourteen year old who learns just before turning fifteen that her life is the invention of albert knag. This is an important perspective from which to study the history of philosophy even if we dont literally believe a philosophers ideas, we can recognize some truth there. Sophies world a novel about the history of philosophy. Read, highlight, and take notes, across web, tablet, and phone. Sophie amundsen is fourteen years old when the book begins, living in norway. A novel about the history of philosophy fsg classics kindle edition by gaarder, jostein, moller, paulette. It follows sophie amundsen, a norwegian teenager who is. Sophies world became a bestseller in norway and won the deutscher jugendliteraturpreis in 1994. A pageturning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of western thought, sophies world has fired the. Check out the new look and enjoy easier access to your favorite features.
Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading sophies world. The book introduces the law of thelema, as given by the goddess nuit to a theban priest, and. Well, i read this book 10 years ago, when i was 17. Jostein gaarders world bestseller sophies world is a book about philosophy, as you may have guessed from the title of this article. Sophies world by jostein gaarder is, in my view, a highly successful attempt to write a history of philosophy together with a story.
Sophie, a 14 year old girl who lived about her daily life until one day she receives a mail by a mysterious person that asks her the question that philosophers where always trying to. He taught highschool philosophy for several years before publishing a collection of short stories in 1986 and, shortly thereafter, his first two novels, the solitaire mystery and sophie s world, and several others since then. The ending of the words magical philosophy of aleister. Dec 22, 2007 sophie s world was a long, strange, and most unpredictable novel. I read this book over the course of a month, while reading other books in parallel, and sometimes taking a break from it on purpose. It follows the events of sophie amundsen, a teenage girl living in norway, and alberto knox, a middleaged philosopher who introduces her to philosophical thinking and the history of philosophy. A novel about the history of philosophy by jostein. Two decades ago, a history of philosophy by an unknown norwegian teacher.
It is also a novel about a young norwegian girl named sophie. How i wish id had it during my college freshman survey of philosophy. A pageturning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of western thought, sophies world has fired the imagination. We encourage educators to visit the association for library service to childrens excellent resource guide for talking to children about issues of race and culture in literature.
Philosophy, wisdom, and wonder theme in sophies world. It makes philosophy easy for the broad public through the fictional story of a teenager named sophie. The ending of the words examines liber al vel legis, the magical transmission received by aleister crowley, through the lens of practical research. Finding two thoughtinducing philosophical questions in her mailbox, sophie enrolls in a correspondence course with a mysterious philosopher, and begins. In the book, there is a story of a 14yearold girl named sophie. Sophie s world quotes will surely be loved by people with brains and a taste for literature. A rare bird indeed, a short history of western philosophical thought from socrates to sartre, coyly embedded in the wrapping. It follows the events of sophie amundsen, a teenage girl living in norway, and alberto knox, a middleaged philosopher who introduces her to philosophical. She is a student of philosophy and the interest begins when she receives strange letters every day. Sophie amundsen is about to turn 15 when she receives a letter from one alberto knox, a philosopher who undertakes to educate her in his craft.
Sophie founded her company and wellness brand, philosophie, with the goal of making it easier, more inspiring, and more delicious to attain optimal health and radiant wellness. He was formerly the editor of free inquiry magazine. Living as though everything centres on our time is just as naive as thinking the earth is flat. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. A novel about the history of philosophy fsg classics. Washington post book world sophie s world is sheer delight. Augustine alternate with those in which we find out about sophie s life with her wellmeaning mother. It presented to me aspects of the philosophy that i love in clean, simple, and essential forms, thereby reaffirming my primary premises.
He taught high school philosophy for eleven years before. When sophie gets home from school, she finds a large envelope waiting for her. Sophies world is a novel about the history of philosophy. Sections in which we read the text of knoxs lessons to sophie about the presocratics, plato and st. Jan 24, 2019 in philosophy and oral tradition 1997, sophie oluwole urges us to return to africas oral tradition as the source of excavating an authentic foundation of africas intellectual culture which the. Jostein gaarder taught high school philosophy for several years, before publishing a collection of short stories in 1986 and, shortly thereafter, his first two novels, the solitaire mystery and sophie s world, and several others since then. Translation 1994 paulette moller p2007 audio renaissance, a division of holtzbrinck publishers, llc. This long, dense novel, a bestseller in the authors native norway, offers a summary history of philosophy embedded in a philosophical mystery disguised as a. Oct 05, 2000 sophies world by jostein gaarder is, in my view, a highly successful attempt to write a history of philosophy together with a story. 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. The book will serve as a firstrate introduction to anyone who never took an introductory philosophy course, and as a pleasant refresher for those who have and have forgotten most of it. Jostein gaarders world bestseller sophie s world is a book about philosophy, as you may have guessed from the title of this article. Sophie, a 14 year old girl who lived about her daily life until one day she receives a mail by a mysterious person that asks her the question that philosophers where always trying to solve.
Is anger some form of madness that destroys the ability to think. Inside, she finds a letter titled, the philosophers project. References edit a b philosopher urges nigerians to embrace indigenous knowledge, languages. Read a plot overview of the entire book or a chapter by chapter summary. Oct 29, 2020 if sophie wants to unravel this mystery, shell need to apply her understanding of philosophy to her own world. A pageturning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of western thought, sophies world has fired the imagination of readers all over the world, with more than twenty million copies in print. In this long, self referential novel to use the word loosely, gaarder presents philosophy in a clear, cogent way, using sophies and hildes experiences to illustrate his points. Sophies world is a 1991 novel by norwegian writer jostein gaarder. Aug 10, 2017 bertrand russels a history of western philosophy has held a position of reverence since its first publication in 1945. Sophies world is a novel by jostein gaarder that was first published 1991. This is philosophy 101, it gives a good idea about the history of philosophy. Sophie, on the other hand, finds plausible elements in these ideas, even if she doesnt exactly believe them. One day fourteenyearold sophie amundsen comes home from school to find in her mailbox two notes, with one question on each.
When sophie gets angry teaching children philosophy. Sophie learns this and many other things from alberto knox, the philosopher who albert knag invented as her teacher. Wanting to understand the most fundamental questions of the universe isnt the province of ivorytower intellectuals alone, as this books. I bought this book for me neice, as she turned 17 last month. Sep 25, 1994 and sophie s world, by jostein gaarder, subtitled a novel about the history of philosophy, is, according to newsweek, europes hottest novel. A pageturning novel that is also an exploration of the great philosophical concepts of western thought, sophies world has fired the imagination of. Through these unusual circumstances, sophie embarks on the study of philosophy with alberto knoxa middle aged mystery man in a beret. This book was originally published in the norwegian language under. Oluwole was the first female doctorate degree holder in philosophy in nigeria. She begins a strange correspondence course in philosophy. A contemporary casebook hardcover august 1, 2007 by rhoda sirlin and james l. Sections in which we read the text of knoxs lessons.
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