Eunice Tietjens

author

Eunice Tietjens

1884–1944

A Chicago-born poet, novelist, editor, and traveler, she wrote with unusual range—from intimate lyric poems to vivid work shaped by her time in Asia during World War I. She also helped champion modern poetry through her long editorial work at Poetry magazine.

1 Audiobook

Profiles from China

by Eunice Tietjens

About the author

Born in Chicago in 1884, Eunice Tietjens studied at the University of Chicago and became known as a poet, novelist, and literary editor. Her writing life was notably wide-ranging: alongside poems and fiction, she produced travel writing and nonfiction that drew on firsthand experience.

During World War I, she spent time in China and Japan with the Young Men's Christian Association, and that experience shaped some of her best-known work, including Profiles from China. She later became closely associated with Poetry magazine in Chicago, where she served for many years in an editorial role and helped support emerging modern writers.

Tietjens died in 1944, but her career still stands out for its blend of literary craft, curiosity about the wider world, and deep involvement in the culture of American poetry.