Summary an aelion hand
Answers
Hands ▾ search
Search for any book or any question
Search
Hands
HOME > STUDY GUIDES > HANDS
Hands Summary
Sherwood Anderson
Summary
(COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO SHORT STORIES, CRITICAL EDITION)
print Print document PDF list Cite link Link
Wing Biddlebaum, a fat little old man, lives an isolated life in a small frame house outside Winesburg, a small, provincial Ohio town. Beset by troubling doubts, he does not think of himself as a part of the life of the town where he has lived for twenty years. In fact, only with George Willard, the young son of the proprietor of the New Willard House, does Wing have anything close to a friendship, and only in George’s presence does Wing lose some of his timidity. On this single day of the story’s action, Wing hopes that George will spend the evening with him. George never appears, and most of the story’s action occurs not in the present but in flashbacks.
During an earlier meeting between the two men, Wing became “wholly inspired” and told the younger man that he cared too much about the opinions of others, and should shut his ears to the roaring of other people’s voices and begin to dream. Wing “raised the hands to caress the boy and then a look of horror swept over his face.”
After Wing flees this scene, George thinks Wing’s hands have something to do with his fear of him and everyone. Here begins a major flashback, “the story of the hands. Perhaps our talking of them will arouse the poet who will tell the hidden wonder story of the influence for which the hands were but fluttering pennants of promise.”
Wing had an earlier existence as Adolph Myers, a twenty-year-old school teacher in rural Pennsylvania....
(The entire section is 527 words.)
Unlock This Study Guide Now
Start your 48-hour free trial to unlock this 60-page Hands study guide and get instant access to the following:
Summary
Themes
Characters
Critical Essays
Analysis
11 Homework Help Questions with Expert Answers
You'll also get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and 300,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts.
Start 48-Hour Free Trial to Unlock
Already a member? Log in here.
Summary
(SHORT STORIES FOR STUDENTS)
print Print document PDF list Cite link Link
The story opens with a sentence that establishes the setting and the main character: ‘‘Upon the half decayed veranda of a small frame...
(The entire section is 715 words.)
Get Free Access to this Hands Study Guide
Start your 48-hour free trial to unlock this resource and thousands more.
Start 48-Hour Free Trial to Unlock
NEXT:
Themes
Homework Help
Ask a Question
Enter your question for Hands
Submit Question
Hands Homework Help Questions
What is the significance of the source of the rumors in "Hands" by Sherwood Anderson?
It is significant the the source of the rumors that led to the disgrace and banishment of Adolph Myers, also known as Wing Biddlebaum, was "a half-witted boy of the school (who) became enamored of...
How does Anderson play with the point of view in the story "Hands?"
"Playing" with a narrative suggests that the author is utilizing unusual methods to achieve an effect, and frequently this involves rejecting some of the typical guidelines for writing that we...
What stance does Sherwood Anderson's story titled "Hands" take on judging others and what does it...
Sherwood Anderson’s short story titled “Hands” (included in his collection of stories titled Winesburg,Ohio) can be read as a warning against the dangers of judging others unfairly. The story...
In "Hands" how does the imagery of the scene in the first paragraph forecast themes developed later?
It is important to focus on the way in which the author uses the first image of this story to introduce the important and crucial theme of loneliness and alienation. This is shown through the...
VIEW MORE QUESTIONS »
Ask a question
Related Study Guides
Winesburg, Ohio
Sherwood Anderson
Death in the Woods
Sherwood Anderson
Sophistication
Sherwood Anderson
The Egg
Sherwood Anderson
I'm a Fool
Sherwood Anderson
Popular Study Guides
Sweat
Zora Neale Hurston
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The Use of Force
William Carlos Williams
Digging
Seamus Heaney
Petrified Man