The Naked Man by Joseph Hirsch represents a different narrative context, but the vulnerability that comes with being unclothed, and a somber sense of calling, can be read in the painting. This tall young man has just been drafted into military service, as signified by the dog tags and boots around his neck. His pale bare skin against the dark background emphasizes the starkness of this ritual act: stripping off the old civilian life and putting on the life of a soldier. The youth has just performed the first part and now he braces himself for the second, preparing to walk the red-arrowed path marked out before him.