A Woman's Hand by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
The poem explores the theme of femininity and domesticity through the metaphor of a woman's hand. The speaker describes the hand as soft, white, and delicate, yet capable of performing various tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and nurturing. The hand is also depicted as a symbol of love, care, and sacrifice.
By Ella Wheeler Wilcox · First published 1899 · Genre: Poetry, Romance, Melancholy · 258 words
First lines
All day long there has haunted me / A spectre out of my lost youth-land. / Because I happened last night to see / A woman's beautiful snow-white hand.
Like part of a statue broken away, / And carefully kept in a velvet case, / On the crimson rim of her box it lay; / The folds of the curtain hid her face.
Years had drifted between us two, / In another clime, in another land, / We had lived and parted, and yet I knew / That cruelly beautiful perfect hand.
The ringless beauty of fingers fine, / The sea-shell tint of their taper tips, / The sight of them stirred my blood like wine, / Oh, to hold them again to my lips!
What this Textopian page supports
A Woman's Hand is listed on Textopian as a poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox, dated 1899 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Ella Wheeler Wilcox
- Date: 1899 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Poetry, Romance, Melancholy, Symbolism
- Length: 258 words
- Structure: 1 section, 6 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for A Woman's Hand by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Genres
- Poetry — The text is structured in verse and employs poetic devices such as rhyme and meter.
- Romance — The themes revolve around love, longing, and past relationships.
- Melancholy — The tone is reflective and sorrowful, focusing on lost love and regret.
- Symbolism — The imagery of the woman's hand serves as a symbol for past emotions and memories.
Tags
Romance · Poetry · Feminism · Love · Relationships · Marriage · Women's Rights · Societal Expectations · Gender Roles · Emotional Expression · Intimacy · Passion