Educational Metamorphoses: Philosophical Reflections on Identity and Culture

A preeminent philosopher of education in the United States, Jane Roland Martin challenges conventional wisdom that education consists of small, incremental changes within a student’s life. Using case studies of personal transformations, or metamorphoses, Martin examines Malcolm X, George Bernard Shaw’s Eliza Doolittle, Victor - the Wild Boy of Aveyron, Minik the Inuit Child, and several others to demonstrate how substantial personal change can be and how vital education is as a fundamental determinant of the human condition. Martin’s study results in three important claims: that each of us undergoes personal metamorphoses as a result of education; that these changes can result in a radically altered identity and can therefore be either good or bad; and that each change constitutes a culture crossing which can be accompanied by feelings of guilt, accusations of betrayal, alienation, and a sense of loss.