Beyond the Cult of Fatherhood pgs.526-531

The general argument made by David Osborne in his work Beyond the cult of Fatherhood, is that being a parent is a lot harder than it looks, and that it is difficult to work while being a parent as well. More specifically Osborne suggests that society places a specific role for men to go out and work, while women stay at home and be the mother.  This is not the case in this passage, it is in fact the opposite.  People don’t understand how hard it is to simply nurture and care for a child.  He writes “That was when I realize what I had gotten myself into-and how much I had to learn (Pg. 527).” He didn’t realize how hard parenting would actually be until he experienced it for himself.  In this passage Osborne is suggesting that it is hard to work and be a stay at home parent as well.  He also writes, “The contradiction between family and career is nothing new; it is perhaps the central unresolved conflict in the lives of American women today (529).”  In conclusion it is Osborne’s belief that it is hard work to be a parent, and it is hard to have a career as well. He didn’t say it wasn’t possible, because it most certainly is, but he said that it is difficult, which most people are able to find out for themselves when they become a parent.  But Osborne said it is definitely worth all the hard work. “Then he propped himself up on his elbows, leaned over and kissed me. If there are any better moments in life, I’ve never found them (531).”  So being a parent is definitely worth while!

In my opinion, Osborne is right because this is most certainly an issue among many families in America, especially if the family is short on income and needs the extra money to support everyone. For example my sister works, but she works part time so that she is able to be a mother as well.  And that is the case with many of the mothers that I know in my life.  Although some people who aren’t parents yet don’t understand how hard it is to be a parent and to work at the same time, I maintain my respect for all of the parents for doing the hard work of taking care and nurturing a child. Therefore I conclude that it is a lot harder than it looks to be a parent, and one only understands when  they become a parent for themselves.