I think the entire concept of Honorary Degrees in and of itself is kind of weird and possibly insulting. "You haven't actually done or studied any of this, but we're going to give you the certificate anyway." Huh?
I mean, there are exceptions. For example, from the early days of personal computing, where some self-taught prodigies basically defined what we now think of as modern Computer Science. If you've left a huge impact on your field while technically being nothing more than a talented amateur, I think its perfectly justifiable to just hand the person a degree- especially if you get them to define a course for that area of study for your school.
But the whole "you gave us a bunch of money" or "you're really famous and you did something to give PR to our school" as a justification to give a person a degree? That just seems... kind of embarrassing, and cheapens the entire concept of these degrees, even if you are very explicit about putting "Honorary" in the title of it.
It makes me think of tin-plated nobility from the Old World, arbitrarily inventing medals and military honors to give to themselves so that even if they never lead or directed a single soldier into battle, they could get a portrait made of themselves with a chest absolutely covered in shiny medals and ornaments.
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Date: 2009-04-21 12:02 am (UTC)I mean, there are exceptions. For example, from the early days of personal computing, where some self-taught prodigies basically defined what we now think of as modern Computer Science. If you've left a huge impact on your field while technically being nothing more than a talented amateur, I think its perfectly justifiable to just hand the person a degree- especially if you get them to define a course for that area of study for your school.
But the whole "you gave us a bunch of money" or "you're really famous and you did something to give PR to our school" as a justification to give a person a degree? That just seems... kind of embarrassing, and cheapens the entire concept of these degrees, even if you are very explicit about putting "Honorary" in the title of it.
It makes me think of tin-plated nobility from the Old World, arbitrarily inventing medals and military honors to give to themselves so that even if they never lead or directed a single soldier into battle, they could get a portrait made of themselves with a chest absolutely covered in shiny medals and ornaments.