This reading refutes the argument that work caused men in a world that was increasingly industrializing caused men to choose to pick work over their role in domesticity. Instead, this reading claims that the domestic sphere did not shift completely over to women and instead men while having to be more separated because of work still put great effort into being present in their kids' lives. Additionally, another motivation for these fathers going to great lengths in order to interact with their children which the reading asserts is that these men did not want to give up the power they had in the household. (Henry Prior)

In the reading, it is claimed that men's relationship with work changed during the nineteenth century to being seen as something to do more of in order to fulfill their purpose and ennoble themselves. The reading demonstrates also that there was a religious aspect to this attitude as well due to its of reduction of idleness and dissipation. This increased emphasis on work and doing more of it demonstrates the origins of modern work culture which sees the person doing the most work as a honorable worker. (Henry Prior)

The reading discusses the way in which the expectation of the family man is intertwined with that of the independent working man. One of the most interesting aspects of this article challenges the preconception that the more industrialized working man had less time and inclination towards rearing children than their farming predecessors. It is also interesting to think about what the preconception of a 'family man' means in terms of performing masculinity. It seems that it is not enough to be independent, you must also be family oriented in terms of your success going towards your family unit's benefit. (Hannah Covin)

Johansen directly challenges these assumptions about the time working men spent with their families by examining the reality of time spent with family in the period as well as determining if there's a factual basis for the idea that men spent significantly more time with their families pre-industrialization. Johansen points out, using multiple examples, that the long work hours of the second half of the 19th century were not yet ubiquitous. He describes one father spending an evening at home with his daughter, first winding yarn for her while she knit and then recruiting her to help him pickle cabbage. Another father brought his daughter with him on work errands to entertain and spend time with her, bridging the seeming gap between domestic and economic duties. (Cameron Spivy)