Gentle Lena's Wedding Eve

In the short story 'The Gentle Lena' by Gertrude Stein, the titular Lena is a German immigrant to the USA who works as a servant for a family. She is described as patient, gentle, and sweet, and she is liked by her mistress and the children. However, she is often scolded by the family cook. Lena spends her Sundays at the house of her aunt, Mrs Haydon, who brought her to the USA. Mrs Haydon is determined to find Lena a husband, and eventually settles on Herman Kreder, the son of German immigrants. Herman is obedient to his parents and does not want to get married, but he is convinced to go through with the wedding. On the day of the wedding, Herman flees, but he is found and convinced to return. Lena and Herman get married and have three children together, but Lena becomes increasingly passive and distant. She dies giving birth to her fourth child, and Herman is left content with his three remaining children.

Lena's life as a servant

Lena was a German girl who was brought to the USA by her cousin, Mrs Haydon, to be a servant in her household. Lena was patient, gentle, sweet and German. She had been a servant for four years and liked it very well. She was content with her life as a servant, despite being scolded by the cook and teased by the other girls. She was obedient and did everything she was told to do. She was also very good with the children she was tasked with looking after.

Lena was very different from her cousins, who thought she was stupid and silly. They were embarrassed by her and treated her badly. Lena was very dreamy and not very present, and she didn't seem to know how to stand up for herself. She was also very unassuming and never asked for anything. She was described as having:

> "the flat chest, straight back and forward falling shoulders of the patient and enduring working woman, though her body was now still in its milder girlhood and work had not yet made these lines too clear."

Lena was very passive and never seemed to want anything for herself. She was very compliant and did not seem to have any strong emotions. She was also very naive and did not seem to understand jokes or mockery. She was easily manipulated and never seemed to question anything. She was also very trusting and never seemed to learn from her mistakes.

Lena's relationship with her cousins

Lena's cousins treat her poorly, barely acknowledging her existence. They are nasty to her and her other cousins, refusing to kiss their grandparents and being generally disobedient. Lena's aunt, Mrs Haydon, tries to make her daughters behave, but she is too busy to manage them effectively.

Mathilda and Bertha are jealous of Lena, who their mother tries to set up with a good husband. They are proud of their nice dresses, hats, and music lessons, and they hate having a cousin who is a "common servant". They tell their friends how funny their mother is for taking care of Lena, and how dirty and pig-like her family is. They barely nod at Lena when they see her in the street.

Lena's cousins' behaviour is in stark contrast to the other girls Lena spends time with, who tease her gently and make a "gentle stir" within her.

Lena's marriage to Herman Kreder

Lena Mainz, a German immigrant to the USA, is taken in by her cousin and works as a servant for four years. Her cousin, Mrs Haydon, arranges for her to marry Herman Kreder, a young German-American tailor who works with his father. Herman is obedient to his parents and does not want to get married, but he does as he is told. Lena is also obedient and does not want to get married, but she also does as she is told. Herman runs away before the wedding, but his family finds him and convinces him to return. They are married, and Lena moves in with Herman and his parents. Herman's mother treats Lena terribly, and she gives birth to three children, getting sicker with each one. She dies giving birth to her fourth child, who also does not survive. Herman is content with his three remaining children and not having a woman around all the time.

Herman's disappearance before the wedding

Herman Kreder, the son of German immigrants, was marked by extraordinary passivity. Three days before the wedding, Herman went away to the country to be gone over Sunday. He and Lena were to be married on Tuesday afternoon. When the day came, Herman had not been seen or heard from. The old Kreder couple were not worried about it. Herman always did everything they wanted and they were sure he would come back in time to get married. However, when Herman had not returned by Monday night, they went to Mrs Haydon, Lena's aunt, to tell her what had happened. Mrs Haydon was very excited and worried that Herman had gone off, leaving Lena and everything all ready for the wedding. It was decided that the wedding would be postponed for a week, and Herman's father would go to New York to find him.

Mrs Haydon was very angry with Lena, blaming her for being foolish and dumb. She scolded Lena for not answering her questions and for not coming to see her. She told Lena that she was just like her mother, who was always doing things for everybody and never getting thanked. She said that Lena should be grateful for all the trouble she had taken to make her happy. Mrs Haydon told Lena to get ready to be married on Tuesday, wear her new dress and hat, and not to spoil her clothes. She told Lena to go home and tell her mistress that she would be leaving on Tuesday.

Herman's father found him in New York, where he had gone to be with his married sister. Herman's father coaxed him to come home and get married. Herman's sister laughed at him and teased him, but also tried to reassure him. She told him that he would be happy once he was married and that he would like it. She said that he was a nice man and that any girl would be glad to marry him. Herman's father kept telling him that his mother was upset with him and that he should come home and get married. Eventually, Herman agreed to go home and get married.

Lena's life with the Kreders

Mrs Kreder was a harsh woman who scolded Lena constantly. Herman tried to intervene on Lena's behalf, but he was unable to stop his mother's awful scolding. Lena was so scared and dull when she heard Mrs Kreder scolding that she never really knew what was happening. Herman knew that his mother's scolding was all right if one ate very little, worked hard, and didn't hear her when she scolded, but he had to hear it now because Lena was there. Herman tried to help Lena understand, but he could never answer his mother back, and he never felt able to comfort Lena.

Mrs Kreder's scolding, combined with the general hardship of Lena's married life, took a toll on her health. She grew increasingly careless in her appearance and more lifeless in her manner. She had no power to be strong in this kind of trouble; she could only sit still and be scared, dull, and lifeless, sure that every minute she would die.

Lena's health continued to deteriorate with each pregnancy, and she died while giving birth to her fourth child, who also did not survive.

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