"The Living Hand"

In “This Living Hand”, John Keats uses his descriptions of a hand as a metaphor for the speaker’s relationship with possibly a lover or an enemy. He compares the speaker’s living hand to that of a dead hand symbolizing a positive or negative relationship with the reader. The living hand is described as “warm and capable of earnest grasping.” The word capable suggests that a positive relationship could but not will necessarily form between them. He then contrasts this warm hand with a cold, icy hand belonging to a corpse. The dead hand would haunt the other day and night so badly that they would give up their life by ridding their own heart with blood in order for the dead hand to be alive again and not haunt them.
This poem could be used as a threat toward the reader because he holds out his hand at the end of the poem as if expecting the reader to shake it. A handshake symbolizes unity and agreement. Keats is saying it would be unfortunate for the reader to reject the hand because the speaker will make their life terrible. He could also be threatening the reader with death if the offer was rejected. Since he tells the reader to be calm at the end of the poem, the first part is intended to disturb the reader.
However the poem is ambiguous in that the poem could also be directed to a lover. The living hand could suggest that the speaker is alive, but if he were dead his lover would be haunted by his ghost. She would miss him so much she would kill herself so that he may live. It may be that the speaker is trying to woo the reader by telling her that she would be at a loss if she didn’t take his hand. It could also be that he is telling the reader he will not be there for long, and she should be with him while he is able to hold out his hand to her.