PRACTICAL DISORIENTATION & TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE AS A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING & EXPLORING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC’S IMPACT
PRACTICAL DISORIENTATION & TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE AS A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING & EXPLORING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC’S IMPACT

Summary/Abstract: Covid-19, and the measures taken by governments in response to it, have radically changed our lives. Everything from work, school, and socializing to even simple things such as taking a walk outside or shopping for groceries is different. As it is too early to make certain predictions about the long-term impact of the pandemic on our social, political, and economic institutions, this paper aims, first, to provide a conceptual framework for making our pandemic-related experiences tangible. It is argued that two central, interconnected aspects can be explicated: our current experiences bring about both practical disorientation and epistemic transformation. The second part of this paper is explorative in nature. A possible moral upshot is explored that appears if we understand our current experiences in light of the developed framework: the disorienting, transformative experiences—by providing us the ability to cognitively model the type of experience defined by living during a severe pandemic—may be understood as providing a stable basis on which we can engage in a dialogue that expands the empathic understanding of how the pandemic impacts each of us.

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