What does " the students may not be calculating flatterers for having flattered. " mean? Can't the poor teacher, desperate for approbation, believe in the innocence of the students' intentions if they say so after she has submitted the grades and the ones saying it are not the ones who got the A's? Yes, and that is just how she flatters herself, though the students may not be calculating flatterers for having flattered. What does " the students may not be calculating flatterers for having flattered. " mean? Could you help me out?