Social theorists in the late nineteenth-century identified two ideals of masculinity. The first type emphasized financial responsibility and familial duties like breadwinning and child-rearing, as well as Christian living. Most writers who adhered to this ideal cautioned middle-class men against going to the Klondike. Critics stressed the fact that there was no guarantee men would become rich. Opponents wrote that the trip was difficult. They argued that if men did go they should not forsake their religious responsibilities and obligations. Some writers pointed out that the trip represented an abrogation of domestic duties. The second ideal stressed aggressive, self-assertive behavior. Proponents urged men to get out of the cities and into the wilderness. If men were in good physical shape and possessed steady nerves the trip would be positively beneficial. In the gold camps men might also take part in "male" activities like drinking and gambling.Department of Histor
