Until recently, i.e., this century, in many areas of the world land had been in the family for centuries, and the protection of the family’s land was essential. Land meant freedom, and for a man to be unwilling to perform his levirate duty meant a disavowal of his duty. He was called a shoeless man, or the unsandalled one. He had placed freedom and family low in his estimation. He therefore deserved to have the widow spit in his face. For him, individual goals were more important than family responsibility.