Hands

The concept of hands in the short story “The Moths” by Helena Maria Viramontes is shown in many different forms. The narrator addresses her hands on the first page calling them “too big to handle.” Her sisters call her “bull hands.” Her hands cannot do girl things and she admits that she spends a great deal of her time beating up her sisters for making fun of her hands. In contrast, her older sisters are pretty and nice and they have hands that can do the girlie things like embroider. The narrator says that she owes a lot to Abuelita for all Abuelita has done. One of which is making a balm which supposedly transforms the narrators hands and shapes them back to size. The reader is not sure how much of this is literal, but what is important is that the narrator’s hands are transformed from manly and hurtful hands into helping hands. Apa’s hands stand out in the story. His hands are described as pounding the table and the narrator says, “He would grab my arm and dig his nail into me,” while he is describing the importance of the catechism. The fists, hands, and nails are all allusions to the crucifixion. Apa is a supporter of the Catholic faith and uses his hands to enforce their teachings on his family. In contrast to this, is the visual of Abuelita’s hands as she is holding the “hammer and nail.” These are tools in the crucifixion, but Abuelita uses these tools in a different way. She is the earth mother. She is building, growind, and, in her own way, Abuelita is reworking the Christian makeup.

Jessica von Fremd