Ida a Novel (32 page)

She always had done she always did what her husband had said she should do and then she did, well she did do what her son said she should do, but she was best of all all day either in her bed that is when she was tired or not. Please be careful not to wake her up although she mostly is awake. She does waste some time in sleep but not really. It is easy to be half awake and half asleep and to say yes I love you you do look very grand.

Now long ago Ida was like that and everybody mentioned it, dear Ida.

Chapter II

There is no use in Ida remembering Ernest no use at all because Ernest will always come in and stand there there where Ida has a chair even when Ida is in and out. Ida complains that all that is to come and to go. Ida is named Ida, dear Ida.

Now we are serious and circumstantial and this is the way.

Ida knew, everybody knows that they like it of course they like it if they did not it just would not go on and it does go on so what else can they do. Of course sometimes he wont let her and sometimes she wont let him and that is what life is and once in a while nobody will let anybody and then well then Ida says no no, yes I will, yes I will Ida says and she says yes and then they begin again. What do they begin. They begin going on not letting anybody do anything and by that time Ida is rested of course she is. She is rested but she thinks her son might be more careful and pretty soon he is and everybody is more careful. And then pretty soon everybody is forgetting and forgot, nice Ida.

Chapter III

Like all who are on a boat Ida is on land, now there are three things there is up in the air.

Ida lived through it all not that she ever did it, she did nothing, she neither waited nor refused, how busy she was doing neither the one or the other, how busy she was.

It could make anybody cry to think how busy she was, and she was busy very very busy.

And then well then the question came should you do what they tell you or should you not.

Who tells you what to do. Well somebody always tells somebody what to do. That is what life is. Believe it or not they do they do tell you what to do.

Policemen are like that they just hold up their hand.

Like everything Ida thinks about she thinks about that.

She thinks everybody will be a policeman by and by even you and I.

Not that she will, not that I will. Ida will not she will not be a policeman she has to rest and a policeman has a vacation but he never takes a rest.

Dear Ida, sweet Ida, Ida, Ida.

Chapter IV

Once upon a time Ida had a father and a mother. Once upon a time she had a husband and a stepfather, once upon a time she had a brother and a cousin once upon a time she had two sets of children.

Dear Ida.

But really what was Ida.

Chapter V

Ida used to sit and as she sat she said am I one or am I two. Little by little she was one of two, that is to say sometimes she went out as one and sometimes she went out as the other.

Everybody got confused they did not know which was which but Ida did, whichever one she was she had always to think about what life was and what was it.

Well now just what was it.

When she was one that is when she was not the other one, everybody admired her, she even had a beauty prize for being the most beautiful one, when she was the other one she had a prize too she had a prize for not remembering any one or anything.
²

That is not the same as a beauty prize, no policeman and no beauty can have that prize, the prize for not remembering anything or any one.

And so Ida dear Ida had everything she even had two sets of children and two husbands, the first one died before the other one, he was really dead, you see Ida did have everything.

Dear Ida.

Chapter VI

And now comes the really exciting moment in the life of Ida. She had it to tell and she did tell it and every one wanted it. Oh yes they did.

Ida was no longer two she was one and she had every one.

Everybody knew about her.

Oh yes they did.

And why

Ida was her name.

That was her fame.

Ida was her name.

Oh yes it was.

That is the way it comes about.

After that everybody knew just who Ida was where she came from and what happened

It did happen.

Everybody knew her name.

And Ida was her name.

It was an exciting time.

That was what happened to Ida.

Nobody said dear Ida any more they just said Ida and when they said Ida everybody knew it was Ida.

Alas nobody cried when they said it was Ida.

She knew, she knew that five is more than ten she knew that six is more than eight, she knew the weight, the real weight of the slate it was a large slate upon which she wrote, she did not really write but on the slate there it was, it was Ida.

Anybody can happen to be there and Ida was always there.

All who knew better than that knew better than to be fat.

Now let us make it all careful and clear.

Everybody is an Ida.

Dear Ida.

Everybody hears everybody when they are heard but that might mean that there is a third but there is not there is only Ida.

Don’t all cry although you might all have a try yes you might, you might all have a try just as well as Ida.

It is just as easy to please.

Now Ida never pleased she never had to they were all pleased.

Just like that they were all pleased, oh yes why not, it was Ida, yes it was.

Chapter VII

And so from the beginning and there was no end there was Ida.

Think of any advertisement, think of anything to eat, there was only Ida.

Dear brave Ida.

Anybody can see that it was all stored all the love of Ida.

Stored and adored.

Bored and reward

All for love of Ida.

Not that they loved Ida.

Nobody does that but they did know and Ida told them so that it was so. Of course it was so. Dear Ida.

So you see now again they say dear Ida.

Don’t you see how it all happened.

Of course it does happen.

But you do see how it will happen.

It will always happen.

Nobody neglects anything.

There is always that, he says she says, there is always that.

Dear Ida.

Once more dear Ida.

I wonder if you understand about that if you did well if you did remember me to Ida. Dear Ida.

BC

Lucretia Borgia

A Play

(1939)

For a while Lucretia Borgia was hurt because she had no cousins. She would have liked to have cousins. Then she suddenly said, he knows, and when she said he knows she meant my lord the duke. The duke was cut off by his position from listening and every little while he liked to be patient, they were often all happy together dear duke and dear Lucretia Borgia but not really very often.

Lucretia Borgia. A play.

5 characters and a crowd, a house, a hill and a moon.

Act one.

Hands open to receive and to give. Lucretia had a house a hill and a moon, she had had to see why she was not early to bed. Gentle Lucretia. What was the trouble. What was it she said. She said that Lucretias are often very nicely received by everybody, and why not, when all a moon does is to stare. Alright. Forget it. This is the first act of Lucretia Borgia.

Lucretia Borgia.

Be careful of eights.

Lucretia’s name has eight letters in it, do be careful of eights. With Winnie and Jenny one does not have to be so particular.

But with the name Lucretia it is unpardonable not to be careful with the name Lucretia Borgia quite unpardonable.

Lucretia Borgia.

Lucretia Borgia An opera

Act I

Lucretia’s name was Gloria and her brother’s name was Wake William. They kept calling to each other Gloria Wake William. And little by little the name stuck to her the name Gloria, really her name was Lucretia Borgia when it was not Jenny or Winnie. How useful names are.
¹
Thank you robin, kind robin.

Lucretia Borgia.

Act I

Lucretia’s name was Jenny, and her sister’s name was Winnie. She did not have any sisters.

Lucretia’s name was Jenny that is the best thing to do.

Jenny’s twin was Winnie and that was the thing to do.

Lucretia Borgia.

Act I

Jenny was a twin. That is she made herself one.

Jenny like Jenny liked Jenny did not like Jenny.

So then Jenny said Winnie.

It is wonderful when Jenny says Winnie.

It just is.

Winnie oh Winnie. Then she said and they all looked just liked Winnie.

Part II

Jenny began to sit and write.

Lucretia Borgia—an opera.

Act I

They called her a suicide blonde because she dyed her own hair.

They called her a murderess because she killed her twin whom she first made come.

If you made her can you kill her.
²

One one one.

YCAL 35.725

A Portrait Of Daisy To Daisy On Her Birthday

(1939)

Particularly which they never need a wish

Because it always comes.

This is her life.

On her birthday and every other day.

She would have liked to have everything, which she had, then she suddenly said, she knows, by which she meant she did. She was not cut off by her position from listening and every little while she liked to be patient, she was very often happy together dear Daisy and Daisy but not really very often.

Hands open to receive and to give. Daisy had a house and a hill a river and a door, she had the sea and the moon and she had to see why she was early to bed. What was the trouble. What was it, she said. She said that Daisies were always very nicely received by Daisies, and why not, when all a moon does is to stare. Alright. Forget it. This is an act of Daisy’s.

Daisy’s name has five letters in it do be very careful of fives.

With Pansy and Violet one does not have to be so particular but with the name Daisy, it is unpardonable not to be careful with the name Daisy, quite unpardonable.

Daisy.

Daisy’s name was Daisy and she kept calling to herself, Daisy. And little by little the name stuck to her the name of Daisy really her name was Daisy. How useful names are. Thank you nightingale dear kind nightingale.

Daisy’s name was Daisy that was the best thing to do.

Daisy’s twin name was Daisy and that was the best thing to do.

Daisy was a twin. That is she made herself one. Daisy like Daisy, liked Daisy. So then Daisy said Daisy.

It is wonderful when Daisy says Daisy.

It just is.

Daisy oh Daisy. Then she said they all looked like Daisy. All Daisy.

Daisy began to sit and write.

She made Daisy.

If you made her can you kill her.

Not if she is Daisy.

And Daisy made Daisy.

One one one.

YCAL 67.1200

Contexts II

Although these three essays were published at different times, they have the year 1935 in common. Stein gave “How Writing Is Written” as a lecture on January 12, 1935, at the Choate School, a boys’ preparatory school in Wallingford, Connecticut, and it was published in the February issue of the
Choate Literary Magazine
. There is some mystery regarding the text of this lecture. Although Stein did write something in advance, she also extemporized during the event, and separating one from the other now appears impossible. The magazine text was based on a stenographer’s transcript; it remains the only extant version, and all subsequent printings have used it.