“Creating in Diaspora: The Poetry of Tenny Arlen (1991–2015)”  presented by Dr. Jesse Arlen

This talk will introduce readers to the life and poetry of Tenny Arlen, whose 2021 book of verse Կիրքով ըսելու՝ ինչո՞ւ հոս եմ (To Say with Passion: Why Am I Here?) (Yerevan: ARI Literature Foundation) marked a watershed moment in the Armenian literary tradition, being the first full-length volume of creative literature published in Armenian by an American-born writer. In 2025, a bilingual (English and Armenian) language edition was published, along with afterwords by Hagop Gulludjian and Arthur Ipek. This talk will reflect on the significance of this volume and some of its important themes, such as solitude, iconic seeing, and the transcendence and immanence of the ineffable realm of the spirit.

Lenten fellowship will be sponsored by the Women’s Guild