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Summary: Just a short review...
Review: I have one word to describe this novel: Genius! I absolutely loved it. I couldn't have learned more about Philosophy if I had taken a course on it! Mind you, I'm not in University yet, but "Sophie's World" has convinced me to take a Philosophy course as soon as I get there! If you haven't read this book, I sincerely suggest you do so, and quickly! ~Ja ne, Sora T.
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Summary: To sweep or not to sweep, that is the question
Review: To be fair to Jostein Gaarder, the novel places in as much as it leaves out. Probably one of the most ambitious works to undertake a sweep of Western Philosophy/Thought. Doing something like this, an author runs the risk of being yet another one of those less than successful sweeps of Oriental thought that flood the shelves - we have too much of both. The author plods into such a wide territory and hopes it all fits in. Gaarder has a relative amount of success with this very new age book. Following Sophie Amudsen, with all the twists and turns, I thought I was in one of those Harry Potter novels - with just a little less magical realism. Gaarder, I guess, needed all this setup for his garden party theme. What is really apparent about half way down the novel is that he spends less and less time with the more current thinkers opting instead to spend his time with the likes of Plato, Spinoza and Berkeley. The examination of Nietzsche is very surface - despite his real and profound effect on the Existentialist movement (which in itself is also very poorly treated). Sartre is given a very brief introduction and de Beauvoir seems to take over as the Existentialist of choice (no pun intended....). Gaarder is a Romantic at heart and it comes out in the latter part of the novel. Published in 1991 in Norway, you would think that the impact of the Structuralists, Post Structuralist/Post Modernist influence of Foucault, Derrida, Lacan, Levi-Strauss and Saussure (and maybe Nietzsche and Sartre) would be documented. Leaning towards a "New Age" examination of understandable truth, an objective Gaarder is an unwilling player to the ever changing "Truths" that new eras and new Discourses examine, articulate and defend - sometimes often with their blood. I highly recommend it as a starter piece but not the definitive sweep piece. A delight to read no doubt but what is more important is that we do take the time to read up on the issues taken up in this book. Philosophy is a very complex discipline and to caricature it this way with one chapter description of a lifetime of examination, the reader falls prey to the reductionist and summarizing tendency of the writer. A journey of a thousand miles, it is said, begins with a single step.Miguel Llora
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Summary: Will Durant meets Alice in Wonderland
Review: Let's face it--philosophy can be rather dry. If you think of the author's main objective: to write a novel focusing on the history of philosophy. That any writer could pull this off is impressive enough, but also consider that Gaarder over-layed the philosophic lessons with a fairy-tale mystery. The result is a very informative book that is also entertaining which should keep most readers interest engaged throughout. Needless to say, unless one is inclined to the musings of philosophy, one should look elsewhere for their fictional enlightenment or escape. My main suggestion is that the author might have considered to update the cosmological worldview of the universe by commenting on Albert Einstein's theories on relativity, and to have given some practical applications on those theories, which are mind-boggling and quite interesting in themselves. Anyway, SOPHIE'S WORLD is an excellent premier for students of Philosophy 100. Also, translator Paulette Muller english translation is well-done.
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Summary: CD-ROM version contain more information than book version
Review: Got text book version one before, but accidentally lost it.. It contests more than book one, exp. Can find Satre introduction inside this CD(lack of introduce in book version).Before install this cd-rom, need to download a patch for let it compatible with Windows Me.After explore floder under this cd, it seem doesn't comprise much "contests". Compare to sophie's world (book) , this cd was giving more "reference", Compare to CD media, it can make even more good.
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Summary: Huge hit in Europe. A good intro to philosophy
Review: I can tell you that this book is a lot more fun that sitting in a college or post-graduate philosophy class. I nearly choked on logical positivism in grad school, but this book makes Kant, Hegel and all the other greats of philosophy easy to absorb. As a novel, I have some quibbles with the secondary theme; the mystery Sophie must solve seems a bit mean-spirited and manipulative to me. How she is treated by someone important in her life is, in my opinion, not how I would treat a child or anyone else, for that matter. The entire tone is a bit teasing, like a superior college professor leading on a neophyte student. Not entirely good natured. Still, this is an unusual book and very helpful for understanding a lot of western philosophy, which can be very DRY going at best. This creative book puts it in honeyed form, easy to take and smooth going down.
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Summary: Fascinating
Review: I read this book in 1997 while on a month long solo trip to England; it proved to be the perfect time for introspection. It's a fascinating book, many-layered, and complex enough to challenge the reader. When I first picked it up, I certainly wasn't expecting all the philosophy involved, but I love to learn, and this was a great introduction to the subject. The storyline falls apart a bit at the end, but perhaps that is intentional, maybe to reflect the chaos of one's mind trying to create sense from all of the conflicting philosophical theories. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: Everyman's introduction to philosophy
Review: We own several copies of this book because we keep lending it out. I wish I had a secret mentor who would excite my curiosity and love of learning the way Sophie does. Her secret mentor presents the history of philosophy in a way that anyone can understand. And knowing the history really helps me understand what philosophy is all about. If you are curious and love to use your mind, this is a must read.
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Summary: lots of info in one small place
Review: this book was excellent! i absolutely loved it, but it was heavy. i was so involved in the story line i read the book in four days, not a good idea. i learned so much about philosophy, but really have no idea what i learned. to really get a lot out of this book, i'd suggest reading like a chapter a day and getting the philosophy out of it!! a great read though!!!
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Summary: Strange Novel, Skimpy Textbook
Review: "Sophie's World" was my introduction to the world of philosophy. When I'm feeling muddled about things, I still turn to it as a reference. I'm glad that I have it because it provides good SUMMARIES of the reasons to study philosophy, of the ideas of major philosophers, and of time periods in history. I capitalized all the letters in "summaries" to stress that these are all "Sophie's World" provides. For something really in-depth, don't turn to this book, which is more like a crash-course in philosophy. What makes this crash-course different from others, I must say, is that it illustrates how one philosophy made way for the next one, such as how philosophers in one era were inspired by thinkers who came before, how ideas were modified and expanded, how history shaped the way people thought and vice-versa, etc. Also, the philosophical discourses in the novel are dialogues between teacher and student which utilize the Socratic method, which is still the best way to start opening a student's mind. The problem crops up when Sophie understands a concept before the reader does. Since she has grasped it, Alberto no longer needs to explain, though the reader may still be dangling and desperate. Another problem with "Sophie's World" is that some parts are very boring, such as Alberto's explanation of how Newton arrived at the Theory of Gravity. As a novel, "Sophie's World" is weird. At first it seems part-mystery story, since both Sophie and the readers have no idea who Major Knag and Hilde Moller Knag are. When the identities of these two figures are finally revealed, the story takes another strange turn. There are many other strange things about the story, such as the TWO ENDINGS (one is abrupt, the other is open-ended). Readers are left unsure about what the moral of the story is. Alberto and Sophie promise to reveal the meaning of life during their "philosophical garden party," but do they really? Neither Alberto's final word on the subject nor the chaotic events that take place during the party (including people's reactions to them) make much sense. One has to wonder about the point of studying philosophy when "graduation day" seems to dismiss philosophy entirely. (Of course, like all things in philosophy, this is open to debate. Some people I know actually thought this ending made sense.)
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Summary: Required Reading for Every American
Review: Sophie's World is a wonderful novel on the history of philosophy. Simply written, easily understood, this novel should be required reading for all high school students in America. From Plato to Decartes to Hume and Hegel, from the Romantics to the writings of Albert Camus, the author touches on everyone and explains not only their philosphical projects, but how philosophy evolved into what it is today. I especially liked reading about Novalis and Freud. But Marx amazed me. All Americans should turn off their fear and pro-capitalist views and read Marx today. There is something to be said for socialism. It might save all of us. But whether you admire Marx or not, this book should be required reading for all. It's a gem. Just watch out for that white rabbit!
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