If you were to ask most parents these days what they hope their child might be when they grow up, chances are the majority of them will say a doctor or a lawyer.
Or, at the very least, they might say they hope their child marries one.
However, had you been growing up in late Victorian or Edwardian England, being a doctor or a lawyer, let alone marrying one, was not exactly something to brag about.
For if you were someone of any means or rank, you probably wouldn't work at all.
Thankfully, the stigmatization of those jobs wore away over time, and people now respect them for the important professions they are.
Sadly though, the passage of time has not been as kind to other professions, whose pedigree has suffered the reverse fate.
Redditor probablyuntrue was curious to hear which professions people believe no longer carry the same pedigree they once did, leading them to ask:
"What job used to be prestigious but isn't anymore?"
If Anyone Rues The Invention Of The Automobile...
"Blacksmith."
"They were the town engineer, manufacturer, craftsman, and problem solver all in one."
"Now they are mostly just hobbyists."- BaconReceptacle
And All They Told Was The News...
"Newspaper columnist and local news anchor."
"They used to be celebrities when they were the primary mediums people got their news from."- 4Ever2Thee
Blame It On The Name Change...
"Flight attendant."
"Back in the 1970s, if you were dating a 'stewardess', all your friends were jealous."- Earguy
Cabin Crew Applause GIF by KLM
Giphy
Maybe It's People's Taste Which Has Taken A Hit...
"I was a furniture and cabinet maker in the 2000s."
"I designed and built entertainment centers for the new flat-screen tv fad."
"Paid great, everyone thought I was cool."
"No one gives a sh*t anymore and the pay has scaled way down with this economy so I’m back in school."- Low-Abbreviations-38
Owing To Certain Connotations, Perhaps?
"Spice trader."
"I was of course talking about reading actual spices."
"With the new movie, being a character in Dune is probably more prestigious than it has ever been."- I_might_be_weasel
Thanks Spotify...
"Nighttime radio DJ."- Scrappy_Larue
"They used to set what music was cool and not."- laudinum
Dj Puppet GIF
Giphy
Before There Was Kinkos...
"Printer."
"Lithographic or various others."
"Used to be an amazing career and essential to society."
"Since the rise of the internet and decline of printed media the industry has died."
"Not that long ago, the spread of information was made possible through printers, not anymore."- Advanced-Stupid
There Sevice Has Been Expedited, or perhaps "Expedia'd"...
"Travel Agent."
"Finding flights, booking good hotels, knowing the cool places to go, how to get tickets to events, and how to pull it all together for someone used to be fairly useful skills to have."
"Now the job is basically nonexistent apart from super high-end or specialty positions."- MrMojoFomo
Their Cargo Is Seldom Precious...
"Letter carriers for the postal service."
"All I deliver now is junk mail and Amazon packages."
"Certified letters used to be treated like it was a classified gov document(because it could be) that you were responsible for."
"You even had to sign out to receive them because you were accountable for them."
"Now they come mixed in with the bulk junk mail."- flyjum
Postal Worker Vintage GIF
Giphy
"Bank manager."- biga204
"I would argue that position is still prestigious in towns under 20k pop."- 2cats2hats
Some Money Management Isn't So Glamorous...
"Working at a Bank."- DogusEUW
"Before the credit score was invented, working as a banker was prestigious because you got to decide if someone got a loan or not."
"Everyone want to be buddies with a local banker because he could sign off on a loan and set the terms."
"How do you think grandpa bought the house?"
"Now individuals don’t do that algorithms do."- Limp_Distribution
"...All The Livelong Day..."
"Freight conductor/ engineer."
"Used to be a great career."
"The hours and schedule have always been rough but the pay made up for the inconvenience."
"Now corporate greed, sh*tty contracts, mass company surveillance, and insane attendance policies have turned railroading into a sh*t job."- Boo_Blicker
Survey Says...
"Land Surveyor."
"3 of the 4 presidents on Mount Rushmore were land surveyors, and owning property was a big deal so people who could give you legal authority over ownership were pretty well respected."
"Now you make $12 an hour starting to dig holes lol."- HandsOfJazz
When You Realize You're On The Wrong Track...
"Working in academia, in a way."
"Over last several decades, tenure tracks got way more competitive."
"Young scientists are now often overworked, underpaid and have uncertain future."
"No wonder that many leave the academia for private sector."- MyKinkyCountess
It's Very Easy To Judge..."
"Is any job considered prestigious nowadays?"
"It feels like the internet has allowed us a deeper look into what every profession really is like and the aura of mystery/awe that used to surround particular jobs just isn't there anymore."- justgonnaknowaway
What Do You Do For A Living GIF by Hot Bench
Giphy
It's certainly worth wondering what makes people think a job is prestigious or not?
The pay? The duties? The qualifications?
None of which should ultimately factor in, as when push comes to shove, all jobs have value.
After all, most of the jobs that were considered "essential" during the height of the pandemic were generally anything but lucrative.
But where would we be today without them?
Redditor MrBonelessPizza24 asked:
"What animals have a bad reputation they don’t deserve?"
Vultures
"At least in my area of the US, the buzzards [turkey vultures] clean up the trash and dead animals on the roads. Yes, they are not pretty to look at but they do the job barely anyone wants to do."
- Cheetodude625
"Fun fact about vultures. In India because cows are revered they would euthanize old or sick ones with a special chemical as it was deemed the most humane way to do it. However despite having an almost steel trap of a stomach this chemical was also killing the vultures."
"The vultures would usually eat the dead cattle when they were decomposing. As a result decomposing cows were no longer being consumed and were beginning to spread sickness to the people around them."
"The Indian government had to make a change to the way cows were euthanized and as a result the vulture population bounced back and sickness due to proximity of rotting cow corpses went down."
"Vultures are very important to the ecosystem, but are usually treated badly because of their primary purpose within it. They shouldn't be, they provide an integral piece of it."
- Ghonaherpasiphilaids
"Himalayan cultures have to assist the scavenger birds by cutting up their dead and feeding it to the scavenger birds."
"Where they are above the frost line nothing really decomposes. It's also much too cold for burial."
"I'm sure they appreciate the birds, as they'd have died of disease without their assistance."
- PolarBare333
GiphyOviraptor
"It's extinct, but Oviraptor."
"Back in the day the first one found was a well preserved specimen lying in a clutch of eggs."
"Not much was known about oviraptor eggs at the time but these seemed to be from a much larger species, so it was thought that the critter died trying to get a free meal, so the paleontologist gave it the name 'Egg theif'."
"Years later, a really well preserved clutch of eggs was found, with perfect baby Oviraptor skeletons inside."
"The original specimen was a mother that died trying to protect its eggs, not trying to eat them. But because of paleontologys' 'first come, first served' rules in regards to naming things it will be forever known as a thief."
- Froskr
GiphyRavens
"Ravens."
"People think they're evil just because sometimes they're scavengers, and they were known to pick at bodies when public executions were still a thing."
"Because of that they're forever the symbol of death and many people think they're evil."
- BroskiWind
"Plus, they are pretty smart."
‐ The_Sound_of_Slants
GiphySharks
"Sharks."
"Humans taste disgusting apparently and sharks prefer something with blubber like seals or whales. Sharks have very very poor eyesight so they often mistake surfers for seals (imagine someone laying down on a surf board, it looks like a seal from below)."
"They aren’t entirely sure what humans are and sometimes they’ll do a test nibble to check. Then will go away once they realize that it’s not a seal."
"Unfortunately their test nibbles aren’t very gentle but also aren’t fatal as long as no major arteries were hit."
"You’re more likely to be killed by a cow than a shark."
- CapaxInfini
GiphyMOO
"Most cows will not really hesitate to walk up to a human which could lead to a dangerous situation. A shark on the other hand?"
"Most sharks will quickly disappear into the depths the second they see a human. Hammerhead sharks, in particular, want absolutely nothing to do with us and will bolt on sight."
"Unless you're splashing around at the surface of the water, the chances of actually getting attacked by a shark unprovoked are super low. Cows seem more likely to attack unprovoked."
‐ Pixel131211
Bats
"Bats. They eat more insects in one night than a spider will in a month. And they're rarely aggressive."
"Bats aren't harmless. They are a carrier of rabies, which is deadly to humans and animals alike. You should definitely be *wary of them."
"They are wild animals, and though they aren't usually confrontational, that doesn't make them friendly, either. All I ask is if they are not bothering you, leave them alone."
"If they are, then please, do something about it. I don't want anyone to feel like they are obligated to allow bats to nest in their chimney or attic."
"Bats belong in the wild, not in your house."
- Independent_Sea_836
GiphySeagulls
"Gulls are actually really expressive and very social, so they're fun to watch."
"Mature gulls in flight are quite beautiful over the ocean."
"The reason they go after people's food is because people feed them."
- olivi_yeah
"I’ll admit that I am one of the feeder people. When I’m fishing, I give some gulls (and other shorebirds) some of the bait."
"They love me and tend to keep the families and other fishermen and fisherwomen far enough away from me to satisfy my hate of socialization."
- Drulock
Giphy(o)Possums
"[North American] Possums. They are very disease resistant."
"They are unlikely to carry rabies, because their body temperature is too low for the rabies virus to thrive."
- Automatic_Judge7910
"They also eat ticks!"
- Laurasaur20
GiphyBlack Cats
"Black cats."
"They are even more adorable than the other cats and I don't understand why they have become the most known symbol of bad luck."
- SpacePickle95
"We've had 3. Each one was as awesome as the next."
"They still have different personalities, but black cats seem to have bolder personalities."
- normaldeadpool
GiphyBees
"Honey bees. People are terrified but the last thing a honeybee wants to do is sting you."
"They just want to work. They are gentle creatures with personality and moods."
- thickener
"Most people can’t tell the difference between bees and wasps and assume bees will behave like wasps."
- ReallySmallWeenus
"We are so large compared to bees that they actually only see us as environmental markers. When they see us, they see a mountain, not a giant."
"They might sting your hand if they mistake it for an adversary, but they don’t care about you."
"They evolved to recognize other insects as predators. You are too big to register as living."
- Crazed_waffle_party
GiphyMosquitoes
"Mosquitoes."
"Just kidding—f'k mosquitoes."
- coobreeze6
"Came here to see if anyone would defend mosquitoes."
"I would have then assumed that "person" was in fact a sentient mosquito. And never went outside again."
- snowman226
"Mosquitos have a vital role in the ecosystem. They are the food of some animals like frogs and dragonflies."
"They are vegetarian most of the time; they eat nectars. They only bite when they are pregnant; they need the protein in blood for the eggs."
"BUT, mosquitos also have the most number of humans killed. They are the carrier of many diseases like malaria and dengue fever."
- Background-Lunch698
"Apparently only 6% of mosquito species feed on humans, and only half of that actually carries deadly diseases."
- NotGod_DavidBowie
My Team
"Bats. Anything that eats mosquitoes is on my team. Unfortunately in my part of the country they’ve been nearly wiped out by white-nose syndrome. https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/white-nose-syndrome-killed-over-90-three-north-american-bat-species"
silviaz*itch
"Bats are my favorite animal and it breaks my heart that they're always the scapegoat. Rabies? Bats. SARS? Bats. COVID? Bats. They're very unlikely to pass on rabies, despite what that rabies copy pasta might have you think, because they die quickly from it."
an_ineffable_plan
WOOF!
"Wolves... they are vital to ecosystems and if you leave them alone they will do the same, if you save its life it'll remember years later, and it's tragic they have such a huge negative stigma against them."
Many_Rule_9280
"I love wolves! I remember seeing one on a hike with my family down by a pond, it was a beautiful sight. Wolves really need more appreciation."
bunnies_can_fly
Set Them Free
"Greyhounds. People breed them and keep them in concrete cages and abuse them and the only interactions they get is being made to chase a fluffy thing to activate their prey drive to win their owners money. And people wonder why they're nervous dogs who chase anything resembling a bunny, including cats and small dogs. Source: I fostered rescued racing dogs."
its_jaz_tho
Genius
"Foxes. Even in children's fairy tales, we were shown that foxes are cunning and greedy. However, in life they are like dogs with the habits of a cat and make cute sounds. Although I may be wrong."
ZaneElrick
"Not wrong, they have many vocalizations and can be fairly tame (rescued or captive foxes) wild foxes are notoriously shy by not gunna bother people. The only cons are they are high risk for rabies and thier pee smells so bad that people who work with them have an impaired social life. But they are still stinkin' cute"
SoccerGamerGuy7
The Scourge
"Hyenas."
IfAwardDeleteAccount
"Just to throw examples out there, hyenas are often depicted as scavengers who scrounge the scraps from the mighty lions. In reality, hyenas are the most successful predators in Africa and lions steal their kills."
"They're also considered to be the most socially complex carnivores in the world and they help to stop the spread of disease by eating every part of their kills. Vultures (another group with a bad rap) are also great at stopping disease from spreading."
BadgerSituation
The Lion King Lol GIFGiphyNot a Pest
"Spiders, they're just doing their thing being good people and eating the true pests."
COVID-69420bbq
"Man, I love having me a spiderbro. So far, I've had at least one in each place I've lived. It's nice knowing I got one looking out for me, keeping my place gnat/fly free. I don't understand what people don't understand about a mutually beneficial relationship. It's like borrowing some friction from a stranger, nothing wrong with it."
asdaaaaaaaa
Oink
"Pigs. Any farm animal, but pigs and cows don’t deserve being mocked and tortured. Pigs are highly intelligent animals, some outperforming 3 year old toddlers. 'Pig' is used as an insult to men/ cops, but it’s a really gross comparison because they’re smart, sweet, and just wanna decorate their little area with flowers. Be nice to all animals please and at least learn about who you’re eating."
Oliviasharp2000
All life on Earth evolved into a niche in the food chain.
While the extinction of one species might not topple the ecosystem, it does have an impact.
Curious to hear about the people who've left quite an impression on others during high school, Redditor Nearby-Level6472 asked:
"What made the 'high school legend' become a legend?"
These legends each had their distinctive methods for attaining their status.
Mr. Lev
"Our legend was actually the gym teacher. He became a legend by getting hit by a bus, getting up, getting on the bus and asking if everyone was OK. He ended up getting fired about 5 years after I graduated because he was caught soaking raisins in vodka and then eating them over the course of the day. Never change Mr. Lev."
The Hybrid
"His last name was 'Alcock' and he ran for student council..."
"His campaign posters consisted simply of his slogan:"
"Part man...Part machine...ALCOCK."
The Brother
"My brother ran in to the statue of our high school mascot with his truck at night. Knocked the bulldog off it's platform then threw it in the back of the truck. It ended up in a pond out by our house. My brother, who was a massive wallflower in school, and never told a soul until he mentioned it to me over some beers in our 30s."
"No one ever knew who it was but it was a big deal and I remember tons of allegations, accusations, and rumors as to how our mascot disappeared. Never in my life would I have ever suspected my brother."
"Legendary in my eyes."
– Finiouss
The Hero
"When I was in 11th grade, a guy a year older than me, in grade 12, saved a grade 9 girl from being abducted by her estranged father in the school parking lot. Her dad hadn't been in her life for years and had previously tried to take her from her elementary school. This being her first year in high school, I guess he tried again. The 12th grader heard her scream as her dad tried to force her into his car and he ran over and got involved, apparently punching the dad before the dad got back in his car and sped off."
"Guy was a legit hero at the school."
– BigPZ
The Heroic Reader
"Not high school but elementary school. We had this system where if we read a book we could take a quiz online ab the book and we'd get points for how much of it we got correct and at the end of the year the students that had a certain amount of points got to go to this after school party with waterslides and food trucks and it was a alot of fun. Anyways, this buddy of mine would read all these big long hard books (they were worth the most points) and hed take the quizes, write down the answers and pass them around to other students and by the end of the year, there were ab 50 students who went to that party including myself all thanks to him. Hope youre doing alright James!"
– ThyEagle
Thief Catcher
"During gym class we noticed people's change and stuff would go missing here and there, as it was a british school with uniforms and blazers etc. Someone left their ipod recording in their blazer pocket and we caught the girl who'd been stealing our change red handed LMAO. It was so crazy bc she was like the richest kid, she was actually a semi-successful child actor who'd been in several shows."
Mudslide
"So, 'legend' in this case means f'king lunatic. He took the teacher's thermos from the back of the room, not knowing it was hers. He goes to the bathroom, with the thermos. Comes back, with the thermos. She says, 'Oh, you found my thermos! Great, thanks! Just put it on my desk.' He does, and then walks out of the room wordlessly. She opens the thermos in confusion."
"He sh'*t in the thermos."
These legends were never seen by anyone on campus, but their presence was very palpable.
The Mystery Prank
"Halfway through my last year of high school someone managed to put a ceramic toilet on top of our multi story gymnasium. I have no idea how that feat was achieved. The school staff didn't know either, nor could they figure out how to get it OFF the roof once they found it. As a result it remained on the gym for the remainder of my time there."
"I never found out who did it, but I will admire them until my dying day."
These Conspiracy Theories Are Easy to Debunk | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Virtual Arcade
"Someone installed games onto the schools server. There were a bunch of N64 emulators, Peggle, and some other games. But then there were also LAN games that could be played against anyone/everyone in the school including Counterstrike and Halo. Sometimes you'd go on and there'd be no one, other times there'd be 10v10 fight in Blood Gulch."
"It lasted at least 10 years but don't know if it has been taken down since."
He Was Untouchable
"Joe Sticka, class of 1969 at my HS. The guy didn't exist. He was created by a group of my friends as a mid-year transfer student with a totally fabricated deep background that was so smooth 'Joe' even made the yearbook with a 'picture unavailable' caption."
- BoS_Vlad
Some legends are so over-the-top, they put on quite a show.
Best Costume, To Be Frank
"It's pretty stupid but a friend wore a Walmart hot dog costume and for some reason everyone thought it was funny, started chanting hot dog kid and he won the best Halloween costume award of that year."
"Next year he wore a penguin costume and as he stepped up on stage he ripped it off to reveal the hotdog costume underneath. Everybody f'king lost it. Sadly we have a rule that you can't win 2 years in a row so while he didn't get the prize we all knew who had the best costume that day"
"That is how the legend of hot dog kid was born at my high school."
The Ruse
"In ninth grade, one of our teachers got sick so we got a sub. And this kid just starts talking in a strong Spaniard accent (like super well) and convinces the teacher he is from Spain. And he talks this way FOR THREE MONTHS. It was hilarious. And when another kid tried talking as a Spaniard too, he got really upset and accused the other kid of mocking his culture etc. Then when the year ended we had to do a presentation and our teacher who got sick came! So the kid just nodded through the whole presentation while his group mates talked. It was hilarious."
Self-Harm
"He cut his thumb off on a third floor window 5 minutes before final bell and busses. Getting all of us locked in the school of an hour as the ambulance arrived took him away and the school cleaned everything up."
Legend In The Flesh
"We had a carbon monoxide leak at my high school one day in which the entire school was evacuated to the football field. The leak was taking so long to fix, that eventually local news cameras started showing up. At about the 3 hour mark of waiting on the football field, one of the seniors ran naked across the entire length of the football field, IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE SCHOOL. He ran straight at the cameras that were pointed at the field, hopped the fence, and ran across a busy intersection... butt naked."
"One of the funniest things I've ever seen. Every single person, including the teachers, was laughing hysterically."
"Kid became a legend that day for sure."
Facing Consequences
"When I was a freshman, there was a senior on the last week of school who thought it would be legendary to streak on campus. He was 18. He was unable to receive his diploma on stage and had to register as a sex offender."
"Go Wildcats!"
"To add to this, I agree that his punishment was harsher than what seems fair. Taking away his ability to walk on stage in addition ro community service would have been better. & in regards to where this occurred, this was in a suburban high school in Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles."
Hard Evidence
"Someone spread a rumor that Legend had a small pp. He responded by photocopying his Johnson and leaving the pictures on the desks of everyone in the class. He got suspended but set the rumors straights. BDE for sure."
Many young adults feel invincible, but the decisions they make can be a fine line between legendary and pure insanity.
Legends earn their reputation after engaging in ridiculous stunts. If they succeed, the status is earned. If they fail, they fade into obscurity after being laughed off or pitied.
Did you have what it took to become legend, or were you happy just being average?
Personally, I was just happy to survive what I thought was a brutal period in my life.
For me, being a survivor of high school makes me a legend in my own eyes, and I'm sure I'm not alone.
