Hands Symbol in Wolf Hall

Many of the characters in Wolf Hall try to conceal their true selves and their true desires, but their hands tend to reveal some essential part of themselves and often symbolize who they are under the surface. While most of them don’t realize that their hands give them away, Cromwell does. He notices hands—other people’s, and his own, too—and uses his observations to deepen his understanding of people. For instance, he notices that Cardinal Wolsey’s hands are “large, white, beringed,” and that “his reach is long, his hand is like the hand of God.” Wolsey’s hands show that he is extremely powerful and wealthy, and they hold no evidence of his lowly origins as a son of a butcher, which highlights how completely he embodies his role as cardinal. In contrast, Cromwell has a scar on the palm of his hand, “an old burn mark, like the twist of a rope,” which he got while helping his blacksmith father in his work. This indicates that, unlike Wolsey, he isn’t able to shake off his own past. However, later in the novel, when Cromwell has established himself as an important man in the king’s court, he notices that “his own hand is white, a gentleman’s hand, […] though he once thought the burn marks […] would never fade.” Hands also give Cromwell a clue to people’s true situations, as when Queen Katherine tries to act like she still is powerful but Cromwell notices that her “little, stubby, puffy hands” are empty, representing the fact that her words are all bluster.

Hands Quotes in Wolf Hall

The Wolf Hall quotes below all refer to the symbol of Hands. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Power, Ambition, and Deception Theme Icon

It is magnificent. At the moment of impact, the king’s eyes are open, his body braced for the atteint; he takes the blow perfectly, its force absorbed by a body securely armored, moving in the right direction, moving at the right speed. His color does not alter. His voice does not shake.

“Healthy?” he says. “Then I thank God for his favor to us. As I thank you, my lords, for this comfortable intelligence.”

He thinks, Henry has been rehearsing. I suppose we all have.

[…]

The urge arises to put a hand on his shoulder, as one does for any inconsolable being. He resists it; simply folds his fingers, protectively, into the fist which holds the king’s heart. “One day we will make a great marriage for her.”

Related Characters: Thomas Cromwell (speaker), King Henry VIII (speaker), Anne Boleyn , Princess Elizabeth

Related Symbols: Hands

Page Number and Citation: 449-450

Explanation and Analysis:

Hands Symbol Timeline in Wolf Hall

The timeline below shows where the symbol Hands appears in Wolf Hall. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...sigh, like a leopard settling in a warm spot,” and rests his “large, white, beringed hand” on his ample belly. (full context)

...Cromwell notices that in the firelight, Wolsey’s arms look very long—“his reach is long, his hand is like the hand of God.” (full context)

Children and Human Connection Theme Icon

...cardinal should be,” Cromwell finds Anne Boleyn. He thinks she looks “sallow and sharp.” Her fingers are “tugging and ripping at a sprig of rosemary,” but as soon as she sees... (full context)

...that he will “put [him] straight on a few matters.” Cromwell notices Gardiner’s “great hairy hands, and knuckles which crack when he folds his right fist into his left palm.” (full context)

...years ago. As they head to the interview with the king, Cromwell notices that Norfolk’s hand is trembling. He understands that “it rattles the old duke to be in a room... (full context)

...that it could perhaps be named after her. Anne has a habit of “tuck[ing] her hands back in her sleeves,” so some people say “she has something to hide, a deformity;... (full context)

...notices that Henry is wearing a “russet velvet, sable-lined.” The “lining creeps down over his hands, as if he were a monster-king, growing his own fur.” (full context)

...that “the House of Commons is full of heathens.” Cromwell notices her “little, stubby, puffy hands,” which are empty. Katherine says the king has now “ridden off without a farewell,” which... (full context)

Dogmatism vs. Open-Mindedness Theme Icon

...king guarantees Tyndale’s safety. Avery expresses concern for his own safety, and Cromwell “curls [his hand] loosely into a fist” and says that if More comes near “[his] people,” he will... (full context)

...Seymour’s daughter, the pale, quiet girl he is so taken with. She holds up her hands and shows him the “kingfisher flash” of the blue silk that she has edged her... (full context)

Cromwell later visits a prisoner, John Frith, at the Tower. When Cromwell takes Frith’s hands, “he finds them all bones, cold and dry and with telltale traces of ink.” Cromwell... (full context)

...his ways. But if Frith dies, More can never save his soul. Cromwell takes More’s hand and holds “its shifting sinews in his own palm.” Cromwell notices that “now his own... (full context)

...and that this was the secret he mentioned in his letter. Cranmer holds out his hands to Cromwell—“fine hands, long fingers, the pale rectangles of his palms crossed and recrossed by... (full context)

...to pat his shoulder, “as one does for any inconsolable being,” and instead “folds his fingers, protectively, into the fist that holds the king’s heart.” He tells Henry that one day,... (full context)

...to pose with, which was a book about keeping financial accounts. Cromwell sees his painted hand and thinks that the “motion [Hans] has captured, that folding of the fingers, is as... (full context)

...in the family since “Incest is so popular these days.” Cromwell notices that Jane Seymour’s hand is like “a child’s hand, with tiny gleaming nails.” She tells him she will serve... (full context)

...and pauses to touch Henry now and then, and Cromwell notices that he brushes her hands away. Cromwell says that Fisher’s case is clear and gives him no anxiety. More’s case,... (full context)

Wolf Hall

Hilary Mantel

Hands Symbol Analysis

Hands Quotes in Wolf Hall

Hands Symbol Timeline in Wolf Hall