Philosophy, directly translated from the Greek words from which it is derived, means love of wisdom. The young character
in Gaarder's story indeed possesses a thirst for questioning and learning. In Sophie Amundsen's World, our young heroine receives a letter from philosopher Alberto Knox, who recognises her as possessing the potential to learn from him the nuances and intricacies of the subject. Throughout the book, Sophie and the reader are educated in the
history of
philosophy from pre-Socrates to Jean-Paul Sartre, while simultaneously, the reader learns about Sophie's daily life.
As the story progresses through these philosophy lessons, Sophie begins receiving other letters addressed to Hilde Moller Knag from her father Albert who is serving the UN in Lebanon. Through Sophie's lessons, she develops the ability to think analytically and comes to suspect that she is only playing a small part in a much larger design.
Gaarder succeeds in maintaining the interest of the reader through making the history of philosophy a journey of self-discovery as seen through the eyes of a 15-year-old girl.