Sophie's Choice characters

Appears from the start

A young aspiring novelist from Virginia who moves to New York in 1947. Calling himself Stingo, he narrates the story from the perspective of his older self. He arrives with little money, strong literary ambitions, and an uneasy inheritance from his Southern family, then takes a room in a Brooklyn boarding house where his neighbors Sophie and Nathan draw him into their volatile relationship.

Appears from the start

A Polish Catholic survivor of Auschwitz who lives in the room above Stingo. Sophie is warm, intelligent, and eager for ordinary pleasures, but she carries severe illness, grief, and memories that she discloses only gradually. Her devotion to Nathan gives her companionship after the war while also binding her to his unpredictable moods.

Appears from the start

Sophie's American lover, first seen as a brilliant, exuberant man whose charm and wide-ranging intellect impress Stingo. He works in biological research and welcomes the younger writer into the couple's life. His sudden jealous rages, however, make the atmosphere around him unstable and frightening.

Appears from the start

The owner of the Brooklyn house nicknamed the Pink Palace. Yetta rents Stingo a cheap room and presides over a loose household whose privacy allows Sophie and Nathan's romance, quarrels, and reconciliations to unfold close to him.

First appears in chapter 3

A perceptive resident of the Pink Palace who knows more about Sophie and Nathan's history than Stingo initially does. His observations help Stingo understand that the couple's violent cycles have been occurring for some time.

First appears in chapter 6

A young woman Stingo meets in New York and pursues as part of his anxious effort to gain romantic and sexual experience. Their awkward encounter exposes the gap between his elaborate fantasies and his ability to understand another person's signals.

First appears in chapter 8

Sophie's father, a respected law professor in prewar Krakow whose authority shaped her early life. Sophie serves him dutifully as a typist and seeks his approval, even when his rigid beliefs and private contempt make that loyalty painful.

First appears in chapter 8

Sophie's husband before the war and the father of her children. He belongs to the respectable Krakow household in which Sophie is expected to obey the men around her, and his fate becomes part of the family destruction she recalls from occupied Poland.

First appears in chapter 10

A Polish resistance member with whom Sophie becomes involved after the deaths of her father and husband. His underground commitments place Sophie near dangerous political work at a time when she is chiefly trying to keep herself and her children alive.

First appears in chapter 10

Jozef's sister and an active member of the Polish resistance. Wanda presses Sophie to assist the underground, appealing to her access and language skills, while Sophie fears that participation will endanger her children.

First appears in chapter 11

Sophie's young son, who is deported with her to Auschwitz. Protecting him becomes the central focus of her efforts inside the camp, where she searches for any connection or privilege that might keep him alive.

First appears in chapter 11

Sophie's young daughter, deported to Auschwitz with her mother and brother. Her presence is bound to the family loss Sophie has struggled to describe since the war.

First appears in chapter 12

The commandant of Auschwitz during part of Sophie's imprisonment. Because Sophie speaks German and can type, she is temporarily assigned work connected with his household and tries to use that precarious access to seek help for Jan.

First appears in chapter 14

Nathan's physician brother. Calm and protective, Larry contacts Stingo when Nathan's behavior becomes dangerous and supplies information that changes Stingo's understanding of Nathan's career, illness, and treatment of Sophie.