why are documents (.pdf) or images displayed to me in email body instead of icons?

This is so incredibly annoying.

If my father email me a picture, he would attach it in his email service on web, and attach, not insert image, yet when I receive it, it shows me the picture in email body. The only way is to click on it, and select show as icon, but apple mail does not remember it, and next email will again show it in email body.

Someone emails me a .pdf, again, it shows entire .pdf in the email body, I can minimise it in that email, but new email comes in, and we will be right where we started.

I scouted settings in Mac OS mail, for the life of me, could not find a setting to tweak it.

I mean, If I had someone in a meeting, and I needed to open an email to read the text and not necessarily want everyone to view the document, I have no choice? Right?

And I mean exactly, the reader's view of attachment, when I am receiving a message sent by someone from web or outlook, that was not attached as embedded document/pic in the email body.

I think using stock apps is best, I really do, but using Apple mail is a horrendous pain, just because of it.

Now, there used to be a code to paste in terminal, to "fix this", but it won't work on Big Sur any more.

How come apple hasn't done anything about it? I mean, I can't be the only annoyed about it.