Coming of Age

Sophie in the beginning of the book is just a normal school girl. When she is introduced to philosophy, she quickly changes. Sophie realizes that she doesn't know who she is or why she does things. By learning philosophy, Sophie begins to learn why people do things and different theories of how the world and the universe work. Each philosopher has a different theme and project that he studies. At the same time, Sophie begins to realize that she and her teacher Alberto don't have a real-world existence. They exist as part of a book by the Major, to help his daughter become interested in Philosophy. The Major finds out that there are no books available to interest young people in Philosophy, so he decides to write one. The reader then sees Hilde reading the book about Sophie and Alberto. Hilde closely identifies with Sophie, who...