Hands By Wing Biddlebaum In The Winesburg, Ohio

Hands is a story that takes place in 1919, in the outskirts of Winesburg, Ohio. It is the story of an amiable elderly man who goes by the name Wing Biddlebaum. His real name is Adolph Myers, however changes his name due to a series of unfortunate events that take place within the small town. Wing is the story’s main character and protagonist, who is depicted as an anxious and timid man. Once a passionate school teacher, the story focuses around the events leading up to Wing’s change of behavior, as well as the aftermath of emotional trauma. The story introduces a Mr. George Willard, Wing’s only friend and reporter for The Winesburg Eagle. It is George whom Wing confides in, and tells his story to. Although there are not many characters presented

in this story, Wing’s hands take up a personality of their own and are a vital part of the tale.

The story begins expressing how Wing had been the town’s mystery for twenty years- a mystery of Wing’s timidity, and the story that unfolds about his hands. A shy Wing Biddlebaum watches a group of rambunctious berry pickers from his veranda near the town of Winesburg. Wing Biddlebaum talked much with his hands, and studied the actions of other men’s inexpressive hands with amazement. In this small town, Wing’s hands attracted a great deal of attention due to their unusual dexterity. Wing’s hands were the source of his fame. Their activity fascinated the town’s people and became his eminent feature. Wing’s hands are comparable to wings of a captive bird, thus giving him his nickname. For with his hands, Wing had picked as much as a hundred and forty quarts of strawberries in a day! The people of Winesburg had been proud of Wing. Conversely, sometimes when George and Wing exchanged conversations, Wing would beat his fists on a table or a wall. This peculiar action made Wing feel more comfortable, and out of respect for Wing, George never questions him. Many times George Willard had wanted to ask Wing about the remarkable behavior of his hands and his inclination to keep them hidden away. One summer

day while walking together in the fields, George comes close to questioning the old man about (the movement of) his hands. George tells Wing he tries too hard to be like the others in the town and declares “You are destroying yourself. You have the inclination to be alone and to dream, and you are afraid of dreams” On the grassy bank Wing starts beating his fists, becoming reminiscent as he speaks.

“You must try to forget everything you have learned” Wing recited. A nostalgic Wing frantically puts his hands in his pockets, and hurries home; tears mounting in his eyes. George grows curious as to why Wing feels his hands are responsible for his indisposition. The look of horror on Wing’s face filled George with sorrow and decided he would never ask about the hands again. This leads the narrator to tell the reader about the story of Wing’s hands. A young Wing Biddlebaum, once addressed by his real name, (Adolph Myers) was a loving teacher at a boy’s school in Pennsylvania. His students admired him, for Adolph was a very gentle and kind man. His delicate demeanor allowed his students to trust him, and often he would accompany the boys after class. Many times Adolph had joined his students talking to each other upon the schoolhouse steps, instilling his teachings about dreams. Every now and then, Adolph’s hands would innocently caress the shoulders of the boys, or even tousle their hair. With his hands and soft spoken voice, Adolph expressed himself to the boys, to where they felt comfortable. “And then the tragedy”. A whit less young boy became utterly

enamored of the school master. In his bed at night the boy imagined appalling things, and in the morning the boy would articulate his dreams as facts. These false “facts” caused an uproar of disbelief within the town. The accusations were astonishing and bizarre to say the least, and sent the town in a frenzy. “He put his arms about me. His fingers were always playing in my hair” boys were saying. One afternoon, a saloonkeeper by the name of Henry Bradford, came to the door of the schoolhouse. Henry was the father of one of Adolph’s students, and single-handedly decided to take matters into his own hands. In the story, the narrator explains how the wrath became greater and greater. Henry began relentlessly beating and kicking the old man; in front of the children, who frighteningly ran away. Sheer terror overcame Adolph as he screamed with panic. That very night, Adolph Myers was driven from the town in Pennsylvania by a group of men. By means of lanterns and ropes, the men went to Adolph’s door and commanded he come outside. The men had planned to hang the school master, yet Adolph managed to escape and ran into the darkness. Adolph was then forced to move to Winesburg where he changed his surname to Biddlebaum. Following the traumatizing experience, Wing decided to become a field laborer, and acquired the tendency to hide his hands. This is also the reason for Wing’s introverted behavior, and loneliness. The series of events that took place would forever devastate Wing and change him as a man.
The conflicts within this plot are prominent throughout the entire story. While the community believes the allegations from the boys, the dissidence presents itself as Man vs. Man, as well as Man vs. Society. Adolph Myers, who was once a respected school teacher, became the town’s target of torment and outcast. The town’s common view was that Adolph had molested his students, and although he was wrongly blamed, the aftermath of the event stayed with him way beyond Pennsylvania. Now a damaged spirit, Adolph is the story’s round character who demonstrates complexity and emotional depth upon the conflict. The trauma and suffering causes Adolph to shun himself away from the world. The psychological affliction is apparent throughout the story, because Adolph is scared to use his hands for anything other than picking strawberry quarts. Adolph never goes back to teaching, which explicates the fact that he was truly weakened after the assertion. The inner emotional damage is an example of Man vs. Himself. It is uncomplicated to see that that the events in Pennsylvania will everlastingly have an effect on Adolph. It’s very sad how one misfortune can change a person for the rest of their lives.