--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I try not to look like a university man…" description: "\"“I try not to look like a university man here…My fellow-guests think of a university degree as a disgraceful preliminary to the blood-sucking life of t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/eil-s-dillon-81994_academic_i-try-not-to-look-like-a-university-man_2611076.jpg" --- # I try not to look like a university man here…My… ![“I try not to look like a university man here…My fellow-guests think of a university degree as a disgraceful preliminary to the blood-sucking life of the bourgeoisie. A sign, moreover, that a man has to earn his own living.” quote by Eilis Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/eil-s-dillon-81994_academic_i-try-not-to-look-like-a-university-man_2611076.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/eil-s-dillon-81994_academic_i-try-not-to-look-like-a-university-man_2611076.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/eil-s-dillon-81994_academic_i-try-not-to-look-like-a-university-man_2611076.jpg) > ““I try not to look like a university man here…My fellow-guests think of a university degree as a disgraceful preliminary to the blood-sucking life of the bourgeoisie. A sign, moreover, that a man has to earn his own living.”” [Eilis Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eil-s-dillon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critiques academic elitism and the need for self‑reliance. **In simple terms:** Reject pretentious academia; earn a living. Key Takeaway Value practical experience over titles. Themes education class critique self‑reliance bourgeoisie identity Mood critical reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - career choice - entrepreneurship - social interactions - personal branding Key Concepts sociology class struggle authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What does self‑reliance mean today? - How to balance education and independence? A Different Perspective Not all fields value formal degrees equally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic/) [Degree Disgraceful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degree-disgraceful-2029789/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Bourgeoisie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-bourgeoisie-2029790/) [Like University](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-university-276027/) [Professor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/professor/) [University Degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/university-degree-2007885/) [University Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/university-man-856208/) ## Related quotes > [I got a chance to listen to and watch Thelonious Monk and his quartet play two shows a night, for six weeks. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chick-corea/i-got-a-chance-to-listen-to-and-watch-thelonious-monk-and-his-quartet/) [Chick Corea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chick-corea/) > [Were I not a king, I would be a university man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-james-i/were-i-not-a-king-i-would-be-a-university-man/) [King James I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-james-i/) > [“A university degree, in any case, is not remotely related to Vedic realization. Saints are not produced in batches every semester like accountants.” After”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/a-university-degree-in-any-case-is-not-remotely-related-to-vedic/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [“HIGHER EDUCATION TODAY is a good news-bad news story. The good news is that a university degree can provide a pass to all to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-horowitz/higher-education-today-is-a-good-news-bad-news-story-the-good-news-is/) [David Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-horowitz/) > [For generations of Hong Kongers, the only means of upward mobility and the only way to meaningfully contribute to society have been to obtain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-wong/for-generations-of-hong-kongers-the-only-means-of-upward-mobility-and/) [Joshua Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-wong/) > [We must have a university degree even if we never get a job in the area of knowledge we were forced to study.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-must-have-a-university-degree-even-if-we-never-get-a-job-in-the/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [In Finland, getting a university degree is the first thing that you expect your kids to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renny-harlin/in-finland-getting-a-university-degree-is-the-first-thing-that-you/) [Renny Harlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renny-harlin/) > [One day, though, I was asked if I'd like to go to the University of Florida and become a Gator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-youngblood/one-day-though-i-was-asked-if-i-d-like-to-go-to-the-university-of/) [Jack Youngblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-youngblood/) > [I'm not like a university-educated scholar. I just sing what I see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-fender/i-m-not-like-a-university-educated-scholar-i-just-sing-what-i-see/) [Sam Fender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-fender/) > [“As a kid I was deeply curious as to what college life would be like. Now that I am a university professor, I realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-kakalios/as-a-kid-i-was-deeply-curious-as-to-what-college-life-would-be-like/) [James Kakalios](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-kakalios/) > [Id like to see the University of Western Australia and the other four or five universities in Western Australia really excel through having some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-forrest/id-like-to-see-the-university-of-western-australia-and-the-other-four/) [Andrew Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-forrest/) > [I didn't like university life much at Bologna. The subjects I studied - economics and business administration - didn't interest me. I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-didn-t-like-university-life-much-at-bologna-the-subjects-i-studied/) [Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/) > [I would like to go to University and be like a normal 20 year old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-woodward/i-would-like-to-go-to-university-and-be-like-a-normal-20-year-old/) [Louise Woodward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-woodward/) > [I like university professors, but you know, we shouldn't hold them up as the high-water mark of all human achievement. They're just a form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/i-like-university-professors-but-you-know-we-shouldn-t-hold-them-up/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [Travel is like a university without walls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-roddick/travel-is-like-a-university-without-walls/) [Anita Roddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-roddick/) ## More by Eilis Dillon > [“Mike wished Mr. Burden had chosen another time to be murdered. He was beginning to see that the hour of dressing for dinner might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eil-s-dillon/mike-wished-mr-burden-had-chosen-another-time-to-be-murdered-he-was/) [Eilís Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eil-s-dillon/) > [“What a fine thing to be as rude as that with such convictions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eil-s-dillon/what-a-fine-thing-to-be-as-rude-as-that-with-such-convictions/) [Eilís Dillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eil-s-dillon/) [Explore all 3 Eilis Dillon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eil-s-dillon/) ## More Academic quotes > [When I went to college, as much as my parents emphasized academic achievement, they emphasized marriage even more. They told me that the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/when-i-went-to-college-as-much-as-my-parents-emphasized-academic/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Instead of explaining the sober facts of mechanics and electricity, I want to say a few words about the debt which we owe to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-bloch/instead-of-explaining-the-sober-facts-of-mechanics-and-electricity-i/) [Felix Bloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-bloch/) > [The Carnegie Foundation is well aware of the fact that their reports frequently find their way to dusty archives in academic institutions, but occasionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-everett-koop/the-carnegie-foundation-is-well-aware-of-the-fact-that-their-reports/) [C. Everett Koop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-everett-koop/) > [Marx, however imperfectly he worked out the details, set himself the task of discovering the law of motion of capitalism, and if there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/marx-however-imperfectly-he-worked-out-the-details-set-himself-the/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Now know I well what people sought formerly above all else when they sought Teachers of virtue. Good sleep they sought for themselves, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/now-know-i-well-what-people-sought-formerly-above-all-else-when-they/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Because my graduate academic training at law school was not one that included most of the intellectual traditions I find useful for understanding the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-spade/because-my-graduate-academic-training-at-law-school-was-not-one-that/) [Dean Spade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-spade/) > [An academic discipline, or any other semiotic domain, for that matter, is not primarily content, in the sense of facts and principles. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-paul-gee/an-academic-discipline-or-any-other-semiotic-domain-for-that-matter/) [James Paul Gee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-paul-gee/) > [“In the end, ethical interpretation of the Bible means to think critically about how our practices of textual engagement might help us to become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-brueggemann/in-the-end-ethical-interpretation-of-the-bible-means-to-think/) [Walter Brueggemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-brueggemann/) > [Perhaps art criticism cannot be reformed in a logical sense because it was never well-formed in the first place. Art criticism has long been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-elkins/perhaps-art-criticism-cannot-be-reformed-in-a-logical-sense-because/) [James Elkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-elkins/) > [And I'm the first one to tell people to break the rules. But you can only break the rules once you know what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-gunn/and-i-m-the-first-one-to-tell-people-to-break-the-rules-but-you-can/) [Tim Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-gunn/) > [Nietzsche's ideas and plans: for example, the idea of giving up the whole wretched academic world to form a secular monastic community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-jaspers/nietzsche-s-ideas-and-plans-for-example-the-idea-of-giving-up-the/) [Karl Jaspers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-jaspers/) > [Quality afterschool programs provide safe, engaging and fun learning experiences to help children and youth develop their social, emotional, physical, cultural and academic skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-stabenow/quality-afterschool-programs-provide-safe-engaging-and-fun-learning/) [Debbie Stabenow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-stabenow/) > [The unary Photograph has every reason to be banal, 'unity' of composition being the first rule of vulgar (and notably, of academic) rhetoric: 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-unary-photograph-has-every-reason-to-be-banal-unity-of/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [Doctoral training is devoted almost entirely to learning to do research, even though most Ph.Ds who enter academic life spend far more time teaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-bok/doctoral-training-is-devoted-almost-entirely-to-learning-to-do/) [Derek Bok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-bok/) > [I am not an academic who happens to have written a novel. I am a novelist who happens to be quite good academically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-am-not-an-academic-who-happens-to-have-written-a-novel-i-am-a/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) [Browse all 958 Academic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I try not to look like a university man here…My fellow-guests think of a university degree as a disgraceful preliminary to the blood-sucking life of the bourgeoisie. 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