Transformative experience and epiphany in education

Abstract

This article argues for the thesis that epiphanies are a central means for transformative moral and intellectual growth. Drawing on recent work on this concept in moral education, the article develops a conception of epiphany as a genre of transformative experience with three distinct phenomenological dimensions: a disruption of our everyday activity, a realization of an ethical good or value, and an aspiration to integrate this value more fully into our lives. After presenting this conception of epiphany, the article turns to some of its educational implications. We argue that transformative educational aims are best advanced when an ethos of epiphany is created in the classroom.