Because the ceremony does not belong to him alone. It belongs to everyone taking part in it.
If you were getting married and one of the bridesmaids decided she didn’t have to follow the script but could pull this or that stunt so the attention would be on her, would it be “stiff-shirt” to say that she was self-centered?
Ceremonies have a real function in culture. Cultures that have no formal ceremonies in which the individual subordinates himself to the society’s rituals are cultures that will fall apart.
We used to have countless rites of passage in which we tested people for their loyalty, their willingess to play their role as assigned.
But toss out a negative label (stuffed shirt) and you’ve solved it. I wouldn’t care if the script for a graduation included face-painting and bubble-blowing as long as the whole group agreed in advance on what the procedures would be and everyone played their agreed-upon roles. MY OBJECTION HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH STUFFED SHIRTS. It’s about being a member of the group and playing one’s agreed-upon role. He knew the rules, why does he have to be so preciously stand-out? What would be wrong with doing what he was asked to do?
Personally, I don't do "group".
“Ceremonies have a real function in culture. Cultures that have no formal ceremonies in which the individual subordinates himself to the society’s rituals are cultures that will fall apart.”
Ceremonies are important. Church, yes; weddings, yes; funerals, yes; Friars’ Club Roasts, maybe. Graduation? No. Waste of time.