"Either a Beast or a God"

[stoutfellow]

I like getting compliments as much as the next person, I suppose. Since the single most important thing I do is teach, compliments from students should be the most satisfying.

I just wish I could take them at face value. A compliment from a student who is handing in a take-home final just doesn't carry the ring of reliability. The only time I can really believe in a compliment from a student is after they've graduated, or at least after they're certain of graduating. (I do occasionally get those, and I treasure them.)

I suppose the best thing would be to be conscious enough of my strengths and weaknesses to be able to compare compliment to reality; but who, this side of the grave, is that secure? (And would such a person need or want compliments? Aristotle had it right.)

Asymmetries of power are a bitch.