“The Transfiguration of the Commonplace” Symbol Analysis

"The Transfiguration of the Commonplace" is the title of the psychological treatise Sandy publishes, a work that symbolizes Miss Brodie's ambivalent influence on her girls and on Sandy in particular. The idea of "transfiguring the commonplace" reflects Miss Brodie's efforts to mold ordinary young girls in her own image—an image she surely regards as beyond the commonplace. Though Sandy is clearly conflicted over Miss Brodie's efforts to transform the girls, given the fact that she ultimately betrays Miss Brodie, her scholarly and religious fascination with the idea of transfiguration suggests that the yearning to transfigure—and be transfigured—is a sympathetic and even admirable one; it's just that human pride, unchecked by other virtues, can cause this instinct to go badly awry.