Annual Sharon Thesen Lecture: truth beauty

Sharon Thesen was the first full professor in the Department of Creative Studies and is now professor emerita here at UBC. She is also a renowned Canadian poet and editor. The Creative Writing program at UBC intends for the Sharon Thesen lecture to acknowledge her contributions to British Columbian and Canadian literature and to the Creative Writing Program at UBC Okanagan. In her honour, a different writer each year will give a lecture that tackles key issues of contemporary writing, poetics, and Canadian literature. By recording each lecture, we will create a wonderful resource of contemporary thinking by writers.

Anne Fleming will present the 2024 Annual Sharon Thesen Lecture on Wednesday, September 25. Participants Anne Fleming and Sharon Thesen will be present in the UBC Okanagan Special Collections and Archives (OSC), as space is limited in the OSC, the public is invited to attend this event in a virtual platform.

When asked about the topic of her lecture, Anne Fleming thought back to her own experiences hearing Sharon Thesen speak:

“The Sharon Thesen Lecture is an opportunity to tackle the persistent big questions about writing: what’s it for, why do we do it, what do we love about it. The big questions preoccupying me right now are: How is fiction true? and Why does beauty matter? which also means asking, What is beauty?.” – Anne Fleming

Register here