Hard Times encourages readers to reflect on what it means to be a complete human being who can function well in any circumstances. Mr. Gradgrind raises his children on facts, but in so doing, he neglects other critical aspects of humanity. Louisa and Tom do not learn how to love or imagine or enjoy themselves. Their whole world is demonstration and reason, and they are scolded for even such normal curiosity as peeping at a circus show. When Louisa finds herself in the predicament with Mr. Harthouse, she is completely at a loss about what to do or how to handle herself, and she laments that she has been robbed of training and experiences that would have made her “wiser, happier, more loving, more contented, more innocent and human in all good respects.” Mr. Gradgrind himself comes to realize that the head is not enough by itself. The heart is also required to make a full human being.

Sissy Jupe stands as an example of a complete human being. While she fails rather miserably at the facts set before her in school, she grows into a competent, compassionate, innocent, loving person who knows how to use her head and her heart to the best effect for herself and others. With her practical common sense, she understands what must be done at any given point. She hurries to get help for Stephen, keeping her head about her as best she can, when she realizes that he has fallen down the shaft. She also arranges for Tom to escape to Mr. Sleary. Yet at the same time, Sissy cares deeply for other people. She loves Louisa even when Louisa is cold to her, and she takes it upon herself, acting out of her love, to confront Mr. Harthouse and tell him to leave Coketown. Indeed, while Sissy is no more perfect than any other human being, she strives for a balance of head and heart that makes her complete and most often happy, even in difficult situations.