The Philosophy of Sonic the Hedgehog

To really enjoy a piece of media is to know one of two things: either you will outgrow it, or it will outgrow you. Once you’re in, you’re going to be in until the thing is canceled or until you lose interest because you’ve either figured out all of the property’s tricks or a lingering sense of remorse begins to fill the back of your mind. That remorse is usually a thought along the lines of, “it’s just not the same anymore.”

That movie, show, game, or cartoon you loved more than anything? It will eventually feel hollow as the years go on. You’ll someday remember that thing you loved with such intensity and you’ll wonder why they don’t make them like that anymore. You’ll move on to new pieces of media and the cycle will most likely continue. And so it goes. Why does this happen? I believe the answer is because you’re not who you were anymore, and you can’t fall for a property like that anymore because you’re no longer the same person.

But rarely, almost unbearably so, a piece of media lingers. Either you have outgrown it and you hold onto it out of desperation, or the franchise has evolved with you. For me, that piece of media is Sonic the Hedgehog. Yes I know. I am a man child.

If you’re a normal person you will likely at least have heard of the character, if for no other reason than a major motion picture was just released last year (as of the date of this article) starring the titular “blue blur.” Maybe you even played a Sonic game or two. Possibly you are even tangentially aware of how vast and expansive the franchise truly is (encompassing multiple comic book series, one of which holds a Guinness Book of World Records achievement, many different cartoons, dozens of video games, and other pieces of media as well). To state that the franchise has a long lasting appeal would be underselling it to be sure. At this point it actually spans literal generations of people.

With the franchise turning 30 this year, I think it, and the character himself, has earned the right to be taken at least somewhat seriously. In that spirit, I have decided to examine the philosophy of the character. Was the character designed to even have a philosophy? Certainly not. But I would argue that very few creations of media designed for the masses at large are designed to convey a philosophy of anything more than a surface level.

So with that unnecessarily long preamble, let’s dive in.

The first roadblock we encounter when examining the philosophy of Sonic the Hedgehog is determining which version of the character is worthy of analysis. As previously stated, there are numerous versions of the character. While all versions share a fair amount of similarities (although some have some remarkably stark differences) I think the most appropriate iteration would be from the main line of video games. If anything, this version of the character is the most well known. While it isn’t my favorite version of the character (that honor will forever be held by the American Archie comic version), it is certainly the longest lasting.

Sonic the Hedgehog, as presented in the main video game series and described in the biography section of the 2000’s era of the official website, is “the spirit of the wind.” This is appropriate given the character’s primary association with speed and wandering nature. He appears to be a wayward vagabond with no permanent home and no immediate desires or wants beyond the thrill of independence. He appears to value independence, minimalism, and freedom above all else. The character takes it to almost ludicrous extremes. He appears to lack any form of interpersonal relationships outside of his best friend Tails, although the original video game manuals describe the tiny mobini animals he frees as his “friends.” He runs away from his love interest, Amy, and has little respect for his friendly nemesis, Knuckles. The character values being unattached and being free above all else. His primary antagonist Dr. Robotnik (don’t even get me started on the name "Eggman") takes freedom away from others by enslaving them inside of machines, which appears to be the primary reason Sonic detests him outside of the broad strokes of generic villainy Robotnik embodies.

So what does all this mean? What exactly is “freedom” in terms of a philosophical context? This question has possibly been at the heart of human civilization since civilization began. Philosophers have been debating the philosophical implications of freedom since the very concept was being churned in the back of the zeitgeist. Dozens of philosophers, on much higher echelons of progressive thought than myself, have had all kinds of insights into the nature of freedom. However, I think the philosophy that Sonic himself would mostly ascribe to would be the concept of ethical individualism pioneered by Rudolf Steiner in 1894.

"With the franchise turning 30 this year, I think it, and the character himself, has earned the right to be taken at least somewhat seriously."

Before we get into why I feel like the character would most strongly resonate with this specific philosophy, I think we need to define what ethical individualism even is. To sum up a very complex idea in a very simple sentence, it is this. True freedom comes only from educated actions determined purely by active (not passive) deeds that originates solely within someone, undeterred from external oppressive influences. In other words, true freedom is the ability to make informed decisions of your own free will and understand the consequences. Steiner also had this whole scientific based philosophy of freedom, but that is a little beyond the purview of this piece.

The first piece of resistance to this analysis would be the limiting factor of “educated actions.” Is Sonic an educated character? Well, he certainly is surrounded by characters more traditionally educated than himself. His best friend Tails is a mechanical genius, as is his arch rival Robotnik. Sonic does not appear to have any sort of educated or academic skills himself though. But having an “educated action” doesn’t necessarily correspond to the traditional ideas of IQ or academic pedigree. It could be argued, and indeed I am arguing, that an educated action is simply understanding the consequences of your choices and how they impact others. In this way, Sonic is very much aware of his actions and the effects he has on others.

This is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand he understand that saving enslaved animals has a net positive impact. On the other hand, his flippant disregard for the feelings of those who love him doesn’t bother him at all. But he clearly understands what he is doing and how it affects others. It is his freedom to take these actions, as he is informed on their consequences, but he takes them regardless. He also takes these actions based on his own free will. Until Robotnik manages to enslave him, he makes his own choices and is his own boss.

I think this philosophy would strongly resonate with Sonic. Overall, Sonic is an uplifting character, even if he doesn’t always treat those around him as well as he probably should. He wants nothing but his own freedom and to make the world a better place. Overall he has a positive impact on the world and he seems to be a happy and uplifting fellow.

This outlook clashes strongly with one of the other most well known philosophies of existentialism and freedom by Jean Paul Sartre. Sartre took a very different approach to the ideas of freedom. He claimed that because there is no God, we are to be pitied and are condemned to be free. Freedom in this case is more of a punishment. Such freedom can be quite daunting, and leads to feelings of abandonment, despair, and forlornness. For not only is there no God to guide us, but our total freedom means each one of us is solely responsible for what he becomes and all of the negative consequences thereof.

Regardless of any sort of religious connotations, I cannot see this philosophy resonating with Sonic. I will not even begin to speculate on the character’s religious belief system, but the general negative undertone and despair of the philosophy would likely be anathema to Sonic.

Of course, as stated earlier, there are more philosophies on freedom than I could ever describe in a few pages of text. But I believe comparing two of the most well known philosophies on the traits held most dear to Sonic would be a deep enough dive for our blue cartoon hedgehog.

And, as such, the freedom to disregard this essay entirely is up to you. Whether you read it all and have made an informed decision, or agonize over the despair that I had the freedom to write it, who can say?

But I’m sure while you ponder it Sonic will be impatiently tapping his foot, wagging his finger at you, and zoom away in impatience. And he’s free to do so.

Jim is an allegedly loathsome human being with absolutely no redeeming qualities. As a result, he funnels all of his time and effort into analyzing the excruciating minutiae of life and nostalgia.