Tribute to Etel Adnan • The Arab Apocalypse

Etel Adnan was 50 years old and the Lebanese Civil War in its infancy when she put pen to paper to write what many regard as one of the greatest poetry masterpieces of the post-war 20th century. This collection of 59 poems (59 as in the number of days the Phalangists laid siege to the Palestinian refugee camp Tel al-Zaatar, ending in the massacre of thousands of civilians) is in a league of its own. Beneath the authoritative figure of the sun unfurls an explosion of sounds, images, literary, and historical references as, with gripping, powerful lyricism, she depicts the end of the world inspired as much by the horrors of war as the Apocalypse of John. If only for this poem alone, Etel Adnan, poet, essayist and painter, holds a singular place among the creative minds of our age.