Gertrude Stein Research Paper

Gertrude Stein uses surrealism throughout the book to show us and give us a view of the French culture such as fashion, logic, tradition, and civilization that the French have which eventually us lead into the theme of becoming “civilized” and into the theme of logic that Stein wanted to convey in the book.

In the beginning of the book it starts off by introducing us to the setting which is Paris, France and the entire book takes place in this setting. The setting connects to the title because essentially the book is all about the French and their culture. It gives us sort of a visual of what Stein is explaining throughout the book and it helps the reader better understand what Stein is talking about. The setting influences the characters

Symbols such as French fashion, their traditions, or their logic are used by Stein to show us how the French are “civilized” as opposed to how America was at that time. All of these different symbols brought on by Stein contribute to her message that she gets across in the book and it brings us back to the theme of civilization or becoming “civilized”. The characters in the book can also be symbols that Stein uses because they serve as examples of Stein’s theme in the book as they also represent France and its culture. Some forms of symbolism were when Stein said, “So there are two sides to a Frenchman, logic and fashion and that is the reason why French people are exciting and peaceful.” (Stein 40). Here, French people serve as the symbols of logic and fashion because they are both exciting and peaceful. Another symbol presented in the book is French cooking in which Gertrude Stein says, “ Cooking like everything else in France is logic and fashion.” (Stein 42). Stein is trying to explain that cooking is a form of art that is also part of French culture, and some thing that the people

Everything that is told throughout the book is mostly from what Gertrude Stein has experienced from being in France and from other people that Stein has been acquainted with. Some of the advantages of the book being in Stein’s point of view is that is helps to get her thoughts and opinions out clearly because they are her own. We can also get a better idea of the different points that she tries to get across. If the book had been in a different point of view, it probably would have been worded differently and it would use different ways to get the points and the theme across if it were changed. Gertrude Stein also tells some of the book by using other minor characters or people in the book such as Antonin Careme, Debussy, Hélѐne, and others mentioned throughout by saying how they contribute to what Stein talks about in the book.

In the book there isn’t necessarily a main protagonist in the book. Gertrude Stein is the one that’s mainly telling the story by stating her opinions of the French people and their culture and by using her experiences to prove her points that she makes in the book, so Stein is basically the main character. Gertrude Stein again uses surrealism to help make her points and then deviates from that to insert her opinions throughout the