“Hands” by Sherwood Anderson is an intriguing short story that is somewhat surreal.
While reading it, it is hard to guess the theme the author is driving. However, this story is titled hands because of the mystery associated with one character. However, the introductory sentence “Upon the half-decayed veranda of a small frame house that stood near the edge of a ravine near the town of Winesburg, Ohio, a fat little old man walked nervously up and down” gives insight into the protagonist. Generally, this story is intriguing and, at the same time, complicated. However, this story of “Hands” will be understood through the character of Wing Biddlebaum. Biddlebaum is a fearful, confused, and harmless character because he does not understand himself and his surroundings.
Biddlebaum wants to be portrayed as a character that knows himself, but in a real sense, he is fearful. Looking at the character, there is any indicator he is a fearless man that can stand for himself in any problematic situation. When a voice ordered Biddlebaum to comb his hair, one could visualize how he was traumatized (Odeh, p.54). This sentence, “…who was bald and whose nervous little hands fiddled about the bare white forehead as though arranging a mass of tangled,” prove that Biddlebaum was a fearful man (Anderson). The text further indicates that Biddlebaum was always frightened, and that clearly shows that he is fearful. Also, the fact that his hands could still move nervously and for a moment he could stand to rub his hands together and to look up and down the road, all justify he is a fearful man. A person who is courageous and confident cannot engage in the behavior Biddlebaum is doing. A person is said to be afraid if they are scared of others and cannot behave reasonably. Therefore, with this kind of characterization, it is no doubt that Biddlebaum is a fearful character.
Biddlebaum is a confused character that leaves a reader to think if they can manage to live a person with his conduct. Now, it a high level of confusion for Biddlebaum to rub his forehead when he was told cut his hair. If Biddlebaum were a normal person, it would have been not possible for him to engage in behaviors such as rubbing his forehead (Anderson). Also, he is a bald character, and it is unfortunate that when he was told about his long hair, he paid attention to such. A person who is not confused cannot do such sill behavior Middlebaum is engaged in. “Biddlebaum the silent began to talk, striving to put into words the ideas that had been accumulated by his mind during long years of silence” (Anderson). This quote depicted a character that is confused and cannot reason at all soberly.
Biddlebaum is a harmless character that cannot cause any harm to any individual frustrating him. He is ineffectual to be a dangerous character, based on how the short story portrays him. A fearful character is unlikely to face an enemy. Quote like this one “All afternoon Wing Biddlebaum had talked as one inspired “(Anderson). He was also not combative, especially to the character that seems to anger him.
In summation, Biddlebaum is a low-esteemed character that is confused, fearful, and unable o be dangerous. The story of his hands is one mysterious one because one wonders why he keeps hiding his hands. Sometimes acts like a patsy that people can take advantage of. His loneliness seems to have taken a toll on him to a point he cannot operate properly. All in all, Biddlebaum is a fearful, confused, and harmless character because he does not understand himself and his surroundings.
