"The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" and calling students stupid.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

If you are a fan of any of the following ... 

• cinematography (especially long, complex takes), 
• stand-up comedy, 
• eclectic music (particularly show-tunes & 50's hits), 
• New York City, 
• Late 50's fashion, 
• sharp, tight writing, or 
• rich, complex characters

...this is the show for you. 

It follows suddenly separated housewife Miriam "Midge" Maisel as she discovers a hidden talent for stand-up comedy in the burgeoning Greenwich village art movement of the late 1950's. 
The supporting cast are probably my favourite part.

• The caustic rapid-fire wit of Alex Borstein's Suzie Meyer's (Midge's hostile manager).
• Kevin Pollack - a stereotypical 1950's Jewish businessman who breaks with his character for a powerfully touching and important "father/son moment" in Season 2. 
• The anxiety-fueled comedic angst of Tony Shalhoub as Midge's brilliant but out-of-touch father - Abe Weissman.

Near the end of that season, Abe is under tremendous stress. The organized, idyllic world he has carefully curated for himself is under assault from all sides and he is in a crisis spiral. 

He walks into his advanced mathematics classroom at Columbia University to find it nearly empty. It seems his recent, erratic behaviour has led to a student exodus. Exasperated by the absence of his star pupil - Truman - he goes off on an epic rant. I tried to find it on YouTube, but the text will have to suffice.

"Let the record show that there are no men in Abraham Weissman's differential equations course. Just a sad collection of fatuous, imbecilic, puerile, blithering milksops. 

Why are all of you still here?!

I have one more math problem for you.

  (All of You) + X =Competence

Solve for X?

Do you want to know what X is?

It's competence - because none of you have any! 

You're all incompetent. You'll never work in any field that has the word "advanced" in front of it. You'll simply be overqualified dishwasher repairmen. I keep telling you that and you keep coming back - well, don't. Get Out!"

Here's the thing

I had a few of those teachers. Now, granted, they were not quite as eloquent as Abe...but I was absolutely in classrooms where one, or all of us, were dressed-down and called stupid.

A couple reflections

• It was a bit frightening when I was younger - but I feel that I rolled with it. Granted, I grew up in a world where any adult could verbally, or even physically, correct me. Once, as a child in Britain, I was caught stealing penny candies in a "sweet shop" by a complete stranger brought who pulled me to my grandfather...by the ear. I got in trouble. He got thanked.
• Verbal explosions like this were almost comical when I was in high school - we all silently "high-fived" each other with our eyes because we had made Mr. or Mrs. (Blank) snap. 
• Most importantly, Almost every time it happened - we kind of deserved it. Well, if not deserved... we had provoked it. Objectively, we were being "stupid" because 
• we were not paying attention to clear instructions or 
• we were not investing sincerely in the work or 
• we were doing something that we had been warned about repeatedly or
• we were being...kids.

As an educator, I have experienced the same frustrations that my teachers must have felt. Obviously, because I still have a job, I don't "yell at" or belittle my young charges. 

I don't know of any educator who would suggest a return to the Weissman method. But, I have heard some say the pendulum has swung too far toward indulgence and we are coddling our children - without preparing them for the so called Real World.

Is there a middle ground?

I'm not sure. I do know that their Real World will be the life that they create and I am confident that they are resilient - just like I was. My ear and my pride have both recovered. Besides, there is nothing wrong with being a good dishwasher repairman.