Cooking with Tender Buttons Food: Roastbeef. Stanzas 18-21. Discussion 5

THE BOOK ..........................-           TENDER BUTTONS

THE SUBBOOK ...................-           FOOD

THE SUBPOEM ..................-            Roastbeef

WORD COUNT (Total)……..-           1757

STANZA(S)............................-           37

—Stanzas 1-3

—Stanzas 4-8

—Stanzas 9-17

THE LEADER........................-           THE STEINY ROAD POET

CO-LLABORATORS.............-            MODPO STUDENTS/THE BUTTONS

Here are “Roastbeef.” stanzas 18 through 21 with a 161-word count. Among the topics addressed in this post are: the bones of contention between Gertrude Stein and her brother Leo, kitchen items or natural elements that stand in for Alice Toklas, kind as stand in for gender, Stein’s gaming and cubism, what comes in fours (e.g. winds and humors) and the four Passover questions, Apollinaire’s and Stein’s interest in the fourth dimension, and the gematria of four which points to door.

The time when there are four choices and there are four choices in a difference, the time when there are four choices there is a kind and there is a kind. There is a kind. There is a kind. Supposing there is a bone, there is a bone. Supposing there are bones. There are bones. When there are bones there is no supposing there are bones. There are bones and there is that consuming. The kindly way to feel separating is to have a space between. This shows a likeness.

Hope in gates, hope in spoons, hope in doors, hope in tables, no hope in daintiness and determination. Hope in dates.

Tin is not a can and a stove is hardly. Tin is not necessary and neither is a stretcher. Tin is never narrow and thick.

Color is in coal. Coal is outlasting roasting and a spoonful, a whole spoon that is full is not spilling. Coal any coal is copper.

“What are spoons? Could Stein be playing with words and meaning Spoonerisms?” Peter Treanor

THE BONE OF CONTENTION BETWEEN GERTRUDE AND LEO

To continue with the theme of hidden relationships that began with earlier stanzas of “Roastbeef.”, the Steiny Road Poet offers that stanza 18 with its seven repetitions of the word bone, might be pointing to the notion of bone of contention. Here’s what Peter Treanor had to say:

“I was wondering if Stein is using bone and bones in the sense of a disagreement/argument, as in ‘I’ve got a bone to pick with you.’

“Is she saying there are four choices in a difference (disagreement)? There are bones of contention that are all consuming. The best way to separate is to have some space?

“This seems to point to a row and separation from Leo, all those kinds in there, kind=alike and kin.”

THE OBJECTS THAT STAND IN FOR ALICE

While Gertrude’s failing relationship with her brother Leo may be hidden in how she presents this subject in the text of Tender Buttons, the actual hidden relationship is her marriage to Alice Toklas.  Stanzas 19 through 21 might be pointing to Toklas, who, in other discussions, particularly those about the subpoems of section 1 “Objects”, has been associated with objects in the kitchen, such as what Stein offers in these “Roastbeef.” stanzas, as spoons, tables and stove but also as the element copper.

On the subject of copper and other elements mentioned stanzas 20 and 21, here’s what Karren Alenier [a.k.a. Steiny] had to say in the ModPo discussion forum:

“I'm thinking that the burning embers of coal look like copper in color. Copper is a stand in for Toklas who is Stein's spiritual home & the bread maker.

“I think tin is also a stand in for Toklas. Tin has 10 stable isotopes which puts it above all other elements in the periodic table. It is silvery in appearance.

Isotope means at its semantic roots in the same place (in the periodic table).

That’s why I think it points to Alice. It also has a relationship with copper.”

STEIN’S KIND

Steiny thinks it is imperative now to address in stanza 18 Stein’s repetition of kind (four times) with the additional kindly that follows up. Steiny’s theory as developed in thinking about the use of kind in section 1 “Objects” starting with the opening subpoem “A carafe, that is a blind glass.” is that gender can be substituted for the word kind. In this case, the overpowering repetition of there is a kind means that Stein is extremely concerned with and adamant about her own gender identification. That also plays into there is a bone, which might be slang for penis. Again Stein identifying as the male partner in her marriage with Toklas relates to a hidden relationship. In the contention with Leo, he is opposed to the marriage fearing that his sister will bring shame on herself.

The repetition of kind is also amplified by the other meanings of kind (a class of, type of, agreeable, loving) as well as the root word kin (family) as Treanor points out. All of these meanings showing a likeness or similarity, resemblance, relatedness. 

There are also more abstract ways of appreciating these stanzas and some of the following comments relate to gaming, art, and ways of thinking.

Emily W commented,

“Are the four choices the face of the cube?  and the four other choices on the opposite face?”

“What I notice is that everything is concrete, solid, there in the world, except hope, except daintiness and determination, which have no hope.  I'm puzzled by ‘dates.’  Are they the food or outings?”

Alenier answered,

“Surprisingly, in the studies last year of ‘Objects,’ there were various kinds of games encountered, especially card games. What has promise is not always a sure thing. Chance comes into play.

“Maybe hope in dates is pointing to hope inundates. [Steiny asks could this be a potential Spoonerism?] There seems to be a surge of this emotional state of hope but some of these items, like gates and doors, seem to be hindrances.

“I like your idea that the four choices might be a cube. Could be dice, no? I think gamblers call dice bones. I'm going to look.”

Here Steiny stops to appreciate Emily W’s comment about seeing the four faces of a cube and how this relates to Gertrude Stein being influenced by Pablo Picasso’s new style of art that came to be known as cubism. Now back to discussion forum comments being made by Alenier:

Yes, dice were often made of bones and called bones on the street.

The oldest known dice—dating back at least 8,000 years—consisted of found objects such as fruit pits, pebbles, and seashells. But the direct precursors of today’s dice were bone: the ankle bones of hoofed animals, such as sheep and oxen. These bones -later called astragalI by the  Greeks- were chosen because they are roughly cube-shaped, with two rounded sides that couldn’t be landed on, and four flat ones that could. Which side would be facing up after a toss, or a series of tosses, was as much a gamble to our ancestors as it is to us today. 

Emily W also commented, “If you count daintiness and determination as one, then there are 6 things, perfect for dice. But there is still hope in solid things not in daintiness and determination.” 

Intrigued by this kind of game, Alenier offered:

“Hope in gates, hope in spoons, hope in doors, hope in tables, no hope in daintiness and determination. Hope in dates.

“Ok, so the face of the dice show: gates, spoons, doors, tables, dates, and daintiness/determination.

“Or the face of the dice show: gates, spoons, doors, tables, daintiness, and determination with a surge of hope (not dates). It’s a little bit different game.

“So what happens if you roll gates--something obstructs you from winning as does doors. Rolling doors seems worse than gates because doors are a bigger obstruction because you usually can't see through it. Spoons seem positive, that surely you would receive something. If you roll daintiness that must be rewarding. The root meaning of dainty is excellent and worthy. But what would determination get you, an opportunity to barter?”