--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now his imagination spun about the hand…" description: "\"“Now his imagination spun about the hand as about the edge of a vortex; but still he made no effort to draw nearer. He had known the love that is fed o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edith-wharton-512_caresses_now-his-imagination-spun-about-the-hand_122792.jpg" --- # Now his imagination spun about the hand as about the edge… ![“Now his imagination spun about the hand as about the edge of a vortex; but still he made no effort to draw nearer. He had known the love that is fed on caresses and feeds them; but this passion that was closer than his bones was not to be superficially satisfied. His one terror was to do anything…” quote by Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edith-wharton-512_caresses_now-his-imagination-spun-about-the-hand_122792.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edith-wharton-512_caresses_now-his-imagination-spun-about-the-hand_122792.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edith-wharton-512_caresses_now-his-imagination-spun-about-the-hand_122792.jpg) > ““Now his imagination spun about the hand as about the edge of a vortex; but still he made no effort to draw nearer. He had known the love that is fed on caresses and feeds them; but this passion that was closer than his bones was not to be superficially satisfied. His one terror was to do anything which might efface the sound and impression of her words; his one thought, that he should never again feel quite alone.”” [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He fears losing the intimate echo of her words, valuing emotional depth over superficial connection. **In simple terms:** He protects the profound intimacy of her voice. Key Takeaway True intimacy resists casual intrusion. Themes love intimacy vulnerability memory Mood melancholic intense Type literary reflective When to use this quote - maintaining a close friendship - protecting personal secrets Key Concepts emotional preservation Practical Applications - practice active listening Questions to Reflect On - How can one balance closeness with personal boundaries? A Different Perspective Over‑protecting intimacy can create distance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Caresses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caresses/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance/) [Superficiality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superficiality/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) ## Related quotes > [“refurbished that image of herself in other minds which was her only notion of self-seeing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/refurbished-that-image-of-herself-in-other-minds-which-was-her-only/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“Her mind was as destitute of beauty and mystery as the prairie school-house in which she had been educated; and her ideals seemed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/her-mind-was-as-destitute-of-beauty-and-mystery-as-the-prairie-school/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“Vane held the reins of his desire in a grip of iron and refused to let his demons loose. 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If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaby/caresses-expressions-of-one-sort-or-another-are-necessary-to-the-life-2/) Gaby > [I will cover you with love when next I see you, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge you with all the joys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/i-will-cover-you-with-love-when-next-i-see-you-with-caresses-with/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Venus yields to caresses, not to compulsion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/venus-yields-to-caresses-not-to-compulsion/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [Caresses, expressions of one sort or another, are necessary to the life of the affections as leaves are to the life of a tree.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/caresses-expressions-of-one-sort-or-another-are-necessary-to-the-life/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [Your caresses enfold me, like climbing Vines on melancholy walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/your-caresses-enfold-me-like-climbing-vines-on-melancholy-walls/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [“How lovely she was in her raiments of silk and levantine purple; the fabric provocatively set off the sheen of her white shoulders, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-rard-de-nerval/how-lovely-she-was-in-her-raiments-of-silk-and-levantine-purple-the/) [Gérard de Nerval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-rard-de-nerval/) > [“His hand caresses my cheek. "Scarlett, I don't want to lose you by fucking up our friendship. I want you in my life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-grover-swank/his-hand-caresses-my-cheek-scarlett-i-don-t-want-to-lose-you-by/) [Denise Grover Swank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-grover-swank/) > [“With a quiet pause, he let his hand come to rest just below the triangle of blond curls that concealed her most tender flesh.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-anne-warren/with-a-quiet-pause-he-let-his-hand-come-to-rest-just-below-the/) [Tracy Anne Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-anne-warren/) ## More by Edith Wharton > [“Suddenly the air was full of that deep clangor of bells which periodically covers Rome with a roof of silver.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/suddenly-the-air-was-full-of-that-deep-clangor-of-bells-which/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“Untrained human nature was not frank and innocent; it was full of the twists and defences of an instinctive guile. 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The time to denounce the bankers was when we were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/there-is-too-much-sour-grapes-for-my-taste-in-the-present-american/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“But in a few years more perhaps there may be; for, deep within us as the ghost instinct lurks, I seem to see it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/but-in-a-few-years-more-perhaps-there-may-be-for-deep-within-us-as/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Dialogue in fiction should be reserved for the culminating moments and regarded as the spray into which the great wave of narrative breaks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/dialogue-in-fiction-should-be-reserved-for-the-culminating-moments/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“These Americans, under their forthcoming manner, their surface-gush, as some might call it, have an odd reticence about what goes on underneath.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/these-americans-under-their-forthcoming-manner-their-surface-gush-as/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) [Explore all 504 Edith Wharton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) ## More Caresses quotes > [“With a quiet pause, he let his hand come to rest just below the triangle of blond curls that concealed her most tender flesh.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-anne-warren/with-a-quiet-pause-he-let-his-hand-come-to-rest-just-below-the/) [Tracy Anne Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-anne-warren/) > [“His hand caresses my cheek. 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I want you in my life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-grover-swank/his-hand-caresses-my-cheek-scarlett-i-don-t-want-to-lose-you-by/) [Denise Grover Swank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-grover-swank/) > [“How lovely she was in her raiments of silk and levantine purple; the fabric provocatively set off the sheen of her white shoulders, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-rard-de-nerval/how-lovely-she-was-in-her-raiments-of-silk-and-levantine-purple-the/) [Gérard de Nerval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-rard-de-nerval/) > [Your caresses enfold me, like climbing Vines on melancholy walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/your-caresses-enfold-me-like-climbing-vines-on-melancholy-walls/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Caresses, expressions of one sort or another, are necessary to the life of the affections as leaves are to the life of a tree.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/caresses-expressions-of-one-sort-or-another-are-necessary-to-the-life/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [Venus yields to caresses, not to compulsion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/venus-yields-to-caresses-not-to-compulsion/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [I will cover you with love when next I see you, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge you with all the joys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/i-will-cover-you-with-love-when-next-i-see-you-with-caresses-with/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Caresses, expressions of one sort or another, are necessary to the life of the affections, as leaves are to the life of trees. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaby/caresses-expressions-of-one-sort-or-another-are-necessary-to-the-life-2/) Gaby > [“Sex pleasure in women is a kind of magic spell; it demands complete abandon; if words or movements oppose the magic of caresses, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/sex-pleasure-in-women-is-a-kind-of-magic-spell-it-demands-complete/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Love My soul was a light-blue gown, sky-coloured; I left it on a cliff by the sea and naked I came to you, resembling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-s-dergran/love-my-soul-was-a-light-blue-gown-sky-coloured-i-left-it-on-a-cliff/) [Edith Södergran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-s-dergran/) > [“You're rather good at this, aren't you?" And she didn't just mean his reading of Gerrard. Vane's grin converted to a rakish smile. "I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-laurens/you-re-rather-good-at-this-aren-t-you-and-she-didn-t-just-mean-his/) [Stephanie Laurens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-laurens/) > [“The cool breeze caresses the back of my neck. I take one of the grips out of my mouth and anchor it through a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-henderson/the-cool-breeze-caresses-the-back-of-my-neck-i-take-one-of-the-grips/) [Lauren Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-henderson/) > [“Vane held the reins of his desire in a grip of iron and refused to let his demons loose. 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