Slang dictionary
Sophie鈥檚 choice
What does Sophie鈥檚 choice mean?
Sophie鈥檚 choice refers to an extremely difficult decision a person has to make. It describes a situation where no outcome is preferable over the other. This can be either because both outcomes are equally desirable or both are equally undesirable.
Where does Sophie鈥檚 choice come from?
Sophie鈥檚 Choice is the title of a 1979 novel by William Styron, and in 1982 Sophie鈥檚 Choice was made into a critically acclaimed film starring Meryl Streep. In the novel, which is set during World War II, the title character must choose between the lives of her two children while imprisoned in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz. She is given an impossible choice: pick one to live while the other is gassed, or else watch both die. For Sophie, there is no best option, and even not making a choice carries a heavy consequence. Either she chooses one of her children to die and lives with the guilt, or she watches both of them die while knowing she could have saved one鈥檚 life. The title and situation it represents became an analogy for choices that are similarly difficult for the person making them.
Examples of Sophie鈥檚 choice
Who uses Sophie鈥檚 choice?
Since the publication of the book and the release of the film, this phrase has experienced broadening in meaning. It can now refer to any life-and-death decision with no good outcomes, as in the original novel. Additionally, it can be used in reference to any difficult choice, with outcomes that are both equally good or equally bad. It can also be used be in a joking, hyperbolic way to describe a relatively inconsequential situation. However, some people may consider a more lighthearted use of the phrase offensive.
Sophie鈥檚 choice is sometimes confused with Hobson鈥檚 choice. The original meaning of Hobson鈥檚 choice can best be summarized as 鈥渢ake it or leave it.鈥� The choice is between taking one thing that is offered or nothing. It鈥檚 not really a free choice, even though it appears to be. But if you are making a Sophie鈥檚 choice, you actually do have two or more options, aside from the option of not choosing. It鈥檚 just that neither one is better than the other. Confusion between the two, however, has resulted in an alternative definition for Hobson鈥檚 choice that is more like Sophie鈥檚 choice.
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of Sophie鈥檚 choice like most terms we define on 亚洲网紅露点, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of Sophie鈥檚 choice that will help our users expand their word mastery.