In today’s society, many people are finding it difficult to find time for their family when they are so caught up at work. At times, it could also be that people are with their family more often that their work starts to slack off. In the story, “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pocket” by Jack Finney, Tom has it difficult spending time with his wife, because he is caught up in his work. The theme of this story is time management between work and family can be complicated. A similar theme is shown in the short stories, “Double Daddy” by Penny Parker and “Diary of a Mad Blender” by Sue Shellenbarger.
First of all, the theme of “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pocket” is demonstrated throughout the story. When Tom decides to stay home, his wife, Clare, tells him, “You work too much—though, Tom—and too hard.” This shows that Tom has chosen his work over his wife. Later in the story, Tom realizes that his time may be short when he, “Wished, then, that he had not allowed his wife to go off by herself tonight—and on similar nights.” Tom realized that managing his time with his wife is more important than his work, which reveals the theme of the story.
Secondly, in “Double Daddy” by Penny Parker, a similar theme is shown throughout the article. The author explains, “More is Expected of father at home these days…but the demands of the workplace, is anything, increased in the recent years. This comes to show that father are needed both at work and at home. Linda Dunlap, chair women of the psychology department at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York, states that men say, “I’m working my tail off to get ahead…but I’m now spending time with my family.” So in recent years, fathers have realized that time management with their family is important, even though they must work to keep their family stable, which shows how complicated managing time between work and family time can be.
In addition, Sue Shellenbarger, author of, “Diary of a Mad Blender,” writes