Tender Buttons

By Gertrude Stein

Book Overview

Gertrude Stein's "Tender Buttons: Objects--Food--Rooms" remains a cornerstone of modernist poetry and experimental literature. This collection of prose poems, a landmark of the avant-garde movement, explores the essence of everyday subjects through Stein's innovative stream-of-consciousness style.

Divided into three sections, "Objects," "Food," and "Rooms," the work challenges traditional notions of language and meaning, offering a unique and often humorous perspective on the familiar. Stein's distinct voice and radical approach have secured her place as a significant figure in American poetry and literary criticism, particularly among women authors.

"Tender Buttons" continues to captivate readers with its playful exploration of language and its enduring influence on experimental writing. Experience Stein's groundbreaking work in this meticulously prepared print edition.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1023040018
• ISBN13: 9781023040013
• Release Date: March 2025
• Publisher: Anson Street Press
• Length: 38 Pages
• Weight: 0.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.1" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

(un)lost generation

Mimic and talk and write like some kind of Gertrude Stein. We don't know what roots are - rootless - my generation is not lost - we're staying put on the couch where we live. No one can say we're not (or are) expatriate because the shores of our big sea end at the edges of a computer screen - are virtual (and not) reality - no one travels to get there. No hurt feelings (disaffected) because we're all equal - a populist nightmare with the volume turned down. The self-leveling society. Every idea is as good as another is as good as none as all are included. Our defects become differences become diversity become democracy become diluted and die. An eye for an eye made the whole world blind or one-eyed and only some (although they don't want to be singled out) try to make something new something cyclopean (formerly one could say at least but that is pejorative) toward the future but that detracts from the past which we defend on principle only but not in actuality so as soon as we can think of it we'll change that name too but don't pressure us.

Modernist Classic That's Fun to Read

The playfulness & intellectual rigor of the best of theModernist movement unite in this small book of exquisiteprose poems that may be read, on one level at least, asan extended allegory of eroticism (e.g. "tender buttons"are nipples); & on another, as a manifesto of what wasto become L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E poetry. But you don't really needto be a scholar to appreciate the freshness & lovelyrhythms of the poems. They are like nothing else thatexisted at the the time they were written (not even thegreat Victorian "nonsense" poets dared to be this non-referential) & though they have cast a long shadow across late 20c. PoMo,there really has been nothing quite like them since.

Pure utter geniusness.

My random poems have been said to be Stein-like. Now that I know more about G.S., a poem was inspired by her..."Gertrude Stein Poeme O'Mijn":Images realize aspects throughout. Painting daunting solid reasonable feisty planes of aura felt. Pangs of fluid energy suffer thought. Remaining understood eras feel wrought over and through. Satisfied mental strain tally connective ways again. Palled sorts of slews o'mirage onslaught on papyrus.

Endlessly rereadable; the best prose poem of all time

I don't have as much patience as some with Stein's other work, but "Tender Buttons" is sublime. It leads the mind down paths it would never otherwise follow. I'm basically a philistine, and a populist, but this book never loses its splendour. Here (and here only, for me) Gertrude Stein had perfect pitch.