The Importance of Dressing Well in Education

Well, talk about the importance of a man

dressing as well as he can.

Uh, 'cause I mean, I, I live in a pretty depressed area here,

and

it's quite sad to see so many people in the grocery store wearing

pajamas.

And I, I gotta presume they have something else

to wear, but they think it's

acceptable to wear pajamas. Pajamas to the airport.

Why is that a bad idea?

It's immature.

It's antisocial.

Antisocial.

Yeah, it's, it's really, like, literally, it's antisocial. It's like who...

You know, your clothes aren't exactly for you.

Yeah. Right.

They're more for other people, right?

I mean, they're-

It's like why you-

... a symbol of respect

... yeah.

And that's why-

I, I brush my teeth, right?

Right, right, right.

For the sake of not just me and my-

Right, exactly

... dental hygiene, but-

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. It's a gesture of respect.

I mean, my father, who's still alive,

he was an elementary school teacher, and in the '60s and the '70s,

and he always

wore a suit. And I asked him one day, "Why do you wear a suit?" He said, "To

show respect to my students." And so when I began my work as a junior

professor, I... Well, I started dressing rel-

rather formally when I was a

graduate student. It kind of put a distinction line between

me and the

undergraduates who were, you know-

Yeah

... not much younger than me. And plus, I was experimenting, you know.

I knew there was something to the formality because formality's been

dispensed with

in our culture-

Mm-hmm

... and so that's a value that's been left on

the table to be despoiled, and so you

can just pick it up and carry it away.

And, uh, and then I wore suits, like I said, as a professor, which

was also very helpful. It was a nice demarcation line.

And I had no behavioral problems at the university ever with my students.

Mm.

Ever. 'Cause they knew-

You won't appear, right?

Well, they also-

Like you won't-

... knew, like, I had zero tolerance for that.

Cause any trouble in my class, you're gone.

And if I never see you again, no problem.

I'll be fine.

This is not-

Uh-huh

... the high school.

Yeah.

Right.

Yeah.