| Gertrude Stein and the Present | Allegra Stewart | Hardvard University Press | 1967 |
Neither a biography nor a psychological study of Gertrude Stein, this book attempts to trace the development and expression of her thought. Through a close reading and analysis of Stein’s works, Allegra Stewart discovers a harmony among them that argues a profound personal experience. She sees in Gertrude Stein’s speculations an untiring effort to progress from initial acceptance of the enervating naturalistic concept of the cosmos as a purposeless process to a private vision of possibility and creativity. The psychological, linguistic, and theological implications of that effort are fascinating and have a contemporary relevance that is frequently overlooked.
Table of Contents:
1. Stein and Her Era
2. Language and Vision: A Clue to Steinian Thought
3. Selfhood and the Word: Reflections on Tender Buttons
4. An American Version of the Faust Legend
5. A Way of Kneeling