Going Places: Sophie's Dreams and Reality
Updated 17 October 2026 · Fact-checked
In Going Places, Sophie escapes a poor home and a future at the biscuit factory through daydreams of a boutique and a career, and through an imagined meeting with the footballer Danny Casey. The empty bench by the canal ends the daydream. The story contrasts her longing with the realistic views of Jansie, her family and Geoff.
Understand Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places
Where Sophie lives. Sophie's father is a labourer who eats his shepherd's pie noisily in his vest, and her mother works at the sink with a stooped back. Dirty washing lies in a corner. Jansie, her practical friend, knows that both of them are headed for the biscuit factory. This is the reality Sophie wants to leave.
Her dreams. Walking home from school, Sophie says she will have a boutique. When Jansie reminds her of the money needed and that her father would never allow shop work, she switches at once to being a manager, an actress or a fashion designer. Dreaming is her way of going places in imagination, since she cannot do so in fact.
Her hero. Sophie adores her quiet brother Geoff, an apprentice mechanic, and longs to share the world she imagines he inhabits. She tells him she met Danny Casey, the young Irish football star, in the arcade outside Royce's clothes shop. Her father scorns it as another of her wild stories. Only Geoff takes it seriously, though he doubts it.
The climax. On Saturday the family watches United win, with Casey scoring a brilliant goal, and Sophie glows with pride. Her secret date with Casey, which she told Geoff only, matters to her. In the evening she waits on a bench under a solitary elm by the canal. Hope turns to doubt and then to sadness. Resignation is no sudden thing. She knows that he will not come and that her family would never believe her, but she tells herself that they know how it was.
What the ending shows. Walking home, she relives the imagined meeting in the arcade, Casey's shy smile and green eyes. The change to the present tense and the second person makes the daydream vivid. The meeting never happened, but it is real to her.
Contrasts that help in answers.
- Sophie and Jansie: Sophie is dreamy and unrealistic; Jansie is practical, nosey and fond of gossip.
- Sophie and her father: she imagines a better life; he mocks her and thinks only of the house and football.
- Sophie and Geoff: she talks openly; Geoff is quiet, words are prized out of him like stones out of the ground. He keeps her secret.
Theme in a line. The story is about the gap between dreams and reality and about adolescent hero worship. It treats Sophie with sympathy, not with ridicule.
Key quotations
Short lines worth knowing by heart: who says them, when, and why they matter.
She thinks money grows on trees
Little Derek: When Sophie talks of buying a boutique.
Her family sees her dreams as unrealistic.
Words had to be prized out of him like stones out of the ground.
Narrator: Describing Geoff.
Shows Geoff's silence.
Resignation was no sudden thing.
Narrator: As Sophie waits.
Her acceptance grows slowly.
Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places: key facts
- Sophie's dream ladder
- Boutique
- Manager
- Actress
- Fashion designer
- Date with Danny Casey
- Each dream is bigger and less likely than the last.
- Reality around her
Father labourer, vest, noisy eater Mother stooped back, always at the sink Future biscuit factory Money none - Use as evidence for dreams versus reality.
- The four voices
Jansie practical Father scornful Geoff silent and loyal Derek money grows on trees - Each reacts differently to Sophie's talk.
- The ending
Place bench under a solitary elm by the canal Waiting hope, doubt, sadness Truth Danny will not come Last scene imagined meeting in the arcade in present tense - Link to interior monologue and tense shift.
How to answer Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places questions
Use this for questions on Sophie's character, her dreams or the ending.
- 1Describe her reality first: poor home, tired mother, biscuit factory ahead.
- 2Show the dream: boutique, then bigger jobs, then Danny Casey.
- 3Add one contrast: Jansie, father or Geoff.
- 4Explain the ending: the empty bench and the imagined arcade scene.
- 5Close with your view: sympathy for her longing, awareness of the gap.
Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places in real life
The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.
Daydreams as an escape
Suppose a Class 11 student from a small mining town writes in her notebook every night about being a famous cricketer, though there is no ground or coach within miles.
Her friend calls her unrealistic. Using Sophie's story, say what the dream gives her and what she should add to it.
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Like Sophie, she finds hope and comfort in the dream.
- Sophie's dreams stay imaginary because she takes no step towards them; the meeting never happens.
- The student should pair the dream with a small plan: practice, a local club, a coach.
Answer: Her dream gives her comfort, but without a plan it will stay a fantasy, as Sophie's does. She should add small practical steps.
Memory hook: A dream needs a first step.
Tricks to remember Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places
Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.
B-M-A-F-D: the dream ladder
Boutique, Manager, Actress, Fashion designer, Danny.
Use it when: Recalls the order of Sophie's dreams.
J-F-G: Jansie, Father, Geoff
Practical, Scornful, Silent.
Use it when: Quick contrast for the three reactions.
Elm and canal
The solitary elm and canal are where hope turns to sadness.
Use it when: Recalls the setting of the climax.
Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places: solved examples
Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.
Example 1: What does Sophie want to open? · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
What does Sophie say she will have when she leaves school?
(a) A bakery (b) A boutique (c) A football club (d) A biscuit factory
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- She tells Jansie that she will have a boutique when she leaves school (1 mark).
Answer: (b) A boutique
Example 2: The Saturday match · 1 mark · Very short answerBoard level
What does Sophie's family watch on Saturday, and how does Danny Casey perform?
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- They watch United win (0.5).
- Casey scores a brilliant goal and Sophie glows with pride (0.5).
Answer: They watch United win; Danny Casey scores a brilliant goal.
Example 3: Jansie and Sophie · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
How does Jansie differ from Sophie in her attitude to the future? Answer in 40-50 words.
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Jansie is practical (1).
- Sophie is dreamy and unrealistic (1).
Answer: Jansie is practical and knows that both girls are headed for the biscuit factory. She reminds Sophie that a boutique needs money and that her father would never allow shop work. Sophie, however, keeps changing her dreams, from boutique to manager to actress, and ignores such obstacles.
Example 4: Geoff's role · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Why does Sophie feel close to Geoff although he rarely speaks? Answer in 40-50 words.
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Geoff is quiet and seems to live in a world she longs to share (1).
- He keeps her secret (1).
Answer: Sophie adores Geoff because he seems to live in an unknown world she longs to share. Words have to be prized out of him, which makes him mysterious. He is also loyal: though he doubts her story, he tells no one about the date, so he took her secret seriously.
Example 5: Was it fair to laugh at Sophie? · 5 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency
Sophie's family laughs at her dreams. Do you think the story supports their view, or does it treat her with sympathy? Give your view in 120-150 words.
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Introduction: the family's reaction (1).
- Body: the story's sympathy through detail (2).
- Judgement (1).
- Conclusion and accuracy (1).
Answer: The story does not simply support the family. Her father calls her story another of her wild stories, and little Derek says she thinks money grows on trees. They see her dreams only as foolishness. The narrator shows more understanding. We see how poor the home is, with a tired mother and a labouring father, and how little room it leaves for hope. We feel her pain as she waits by the canal, as hope turns to doubt and then resignation. Even the imagined meeting is described tenderly. The story therefore sympathises with Sophie while recognising the gap between dream and reality. It suggests that dreams are natural for young people, though they need to be joined to effort and a measure of realism.
Where students lose marks in Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places
The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.
Mistake: Confusing Sophie's father with Geoff
Both are quiet to Sophie in some scenes.
Wrong working
Geoff told his father that Sophie was lying.
Right working
Geoff told his father about the meeting; the father called it another of her wild stories.
Do this: Remember: Geoff passes it on, the father mocks it.
Usually costs: 1 mark in an extract.
Mistake: Saying Sophie actually met Danny Casey
The ending is ambiguous only if you miss the clues.
Wrong working
Sophie waited for Danny but he did not turn up.
Right working
Sophie never met him; the meeting in the arcade was imagined.
Do this: End the answer with: the meeting never happened.
Usually costs: 1 to 2 marks.
Mistake: Writing only about Sophie's dreams
The question is about the contrast with reality.
Wrong working
Sophie dreams of a boutique, acting and Danny.
Right working
Sophie dreams, but her home, money and Jansie's realism show reality.
Do this: For every dream, add a reality.
Usually costs: 1 of 5 marks.
Mistake: Treating the story as a comedy
The ending is sad, not funny.
Wrong working
The story mocks Sophie for being silly.
Right working
The story sympathises with her longing and shows her disappointment.
Do this: Use the word sympathy or poignant.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Exam tips
- Always pair a dream with a reality in a theme answer.
- Quote the stones and ground simile for Geoff, and the money on trees line for Derek.
- Mention the tense shift when asked about the ending.
- Keep the characters apart: Sophie, Jansie, Geoff and her father each react differently.
- Do not call Sophie a liar; use words like imaginative and lonely.
Practice questions on Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places
Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.
Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
What makes the family certain Sophie's Danny Casey story is not true?
(a) They saw her elsewhere that day (b) They think it is another of her wild stories (c) Jansie told them so (d) The newspaper denied itHint
Think of her father's reaction.
Answer
(b) Her father calls it another of her wild stories and warns she will talk herself into trouble.
Q2 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Explain the line 'Words had to be prized out of him like stones out of the ground.' Answer in 40-50 words.
Hint
Simile; what it tells us about Geoff.
Answer
The simile compares drawing words from Geoff to digging stones from hard ground. It shows that he is very quiet and speaks only with great effort. This silence fascinates Sophie, who sees him as a mysterious person living in an interesting world of his own.
Q3 · 5 marks · Long answerHarder board level
Describe how the waiting by the canal shows a change in Sophie's feelings. Answer in 120-150 words.
Hint
Hope, doubt, resignation.
Answer
On the bench under the solitary elm by the canal, Sophie's feelings change slowly. At first she waits eagerly, almost sure that Danny Casey will come. As time passes she begins to look at the path more often and feels the pangs of doubt stirring inside her. Then the doubt turns to sadness, and she understands that he will not come. The narrator says that resignation was no sudden thing; it grows quietly. She also knows that her family will never believe her, yet she tells herself that she knows how it was. This shows that she still holds to her dream even after reality has defeated it. The change from hope to resignation shows how fragile and how precious her imagination is to her.
Q4 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Why does the story shift to the present tense and second person in the last paragraph? Answer in 40-50 words.
Hint
Think of how real the imagined meeting feels.
Answer
The shift makes the imagined meeting with Danny feel immediate and real. We seem to live in Sophie's daydream: he turns, reddens slightly and you look away. The change of tense and person blurs reality and imagination, and shows how deeply she believes in what never happened.
Q5 · 2 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
A reader says Sophie is a liar. Evaluate this in 40-50 words using the story.
Hint
Lies against longing.
Answer
Calling her a liar is too harsh. She invents the meeting not to cheat anyone but to escape a poor, dull life and to feel important. She even half believes it herself. The story shows a lonely adolescent's hero worship, not wickedness.
Test your recall
Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.
1.What is Sophie's first dream?Show answer
To have a boutique.
2.Where is Jansie headed after school?Show answer
The biscuit factory, like Sophie.
3.What does Geoff do?Show answer
He is an apprentice mechanic.
4.Where does Sophie wait for Danny?Show answer
On a bench under a solitary elm by the canal.
5.Which figure compares Geoff's silence to something?Show answer
A simile: like stones out of the ground.
6.Did Sophie meet Danny Casey?Show answer
No, the meeting was imagined.
Sophie's Dreams and Reality in Going Places: frequently asked questions
What is the main theme of Going Places?
The gap between adolescent dreams and the reality of a poor home, shown through Sophie's hero worship.
Is Sophie a bad character?
No, she is imaginative and lonely, and the story is sympathetic to her.
Why does Sophie tell Geoff and not Jansie?
She trusts Geoff and admires him; Jansie is nosey and fond of gossip.
What question types come from this part?
A 2-mark question on a character contrast or a simile, and a 5-mark question on dreams and reality.