🔗 Share this article

The prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature for this year has been bestowed upon from Hungary author László Krasznahorkai, as revealed by the Swedish Academy.

The Committee highlighted the seventy-one-year-old's "gripping and imaginative collection that, in the midst of apocalyptic dread, reaffirms the strength of art."

A Legacy of Apocalyptic Writing

Krasznahorkai is celebrated for his dystopian, somber works, which have garnered several accolades, including the 2019 National Book Award for international writing and the prestigious Man Booker International Prize.

A number of of his books, notably his titles Satantango and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been turned into feature films.

Early Beginnings

Originating in a Hungarian locale in 1954, Krasznahorkai first made his mark with his mid-80s first book his seminal novel, a bleak and mesmerising depiction of a disintegrating countryside settlement.

The work would eventually win the Man Booker International Prize honor in the English language many years later, in the 2010s.

A Distinctive Writing Approach

Commonly referred to as avant-garde, Krasznahorkai is renowned for his long, winding phrases (the dozen sections of his novel each comprise a solitary block of text), apocalyptic and somber subjects, and the kind of relentless force that has led reviewers to compare him to Gogol, Melville and Kafka.

The novel was notably made into a lengthy movie by director Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a long artistic collaboration.

"He is a great writer of epic tales in the European heritage that includes Franz Kafka to Bernhard, and is marked by absurdism and grotesque exaggeration," stated Anders Olsson, head of the Nobel jury.

He described Krasznahorkai’s writing as having "evolved into … smooth structure with lengthy, intricate sentences devoid of full stops that has become his trademark."

Critical Acclaim

Susan Sontag has called the author as "today's Hungarian master of end-times," while Sebald applauded the broad relevance of his perspective.

A handful of Krasznahorkai’s books have been translated into English translation. The critic James Wood once wrote that his books "circulate like rare currency."

Global Influences

Krasznahorkai’s career has been influenced by exploration as much as by literature. He first departed from the communist the country in the late 80s, residing a year in West Berlin for a scholarship, and later found inspiration from Asia – particularly China and Mongolia – for works such as The Prisoner of Urga, and another novel.

While working on War and War, he journeyed extensively across the continent and lived for a time in Ginsberg's New York home, noting the famous writer's backing as vital to finalizing the novel.

Krasznahorkai on His Work

Questioned how he would explain his oeuvre in an conversation, Krasznahorkai responded: "Letters; then from letters, words; then from these terms, some short sentences; then further lines that are more extended, and in the main very long phrases, for the duration of decades. Elegance in language. Enjoyment in hell."

On fans encountering his writing for the initial encounter, he added: "For any individuals who are new to my books, I would refrain from advising a particular book to explore to them; instead, I’d advise them to step out, rest in a place, possibly by the edge of a stream, with nothing to do, nothing to think about, just being in tranquility like stones. They will in time encounter someone who has previously read my works."

Literature Prize History

Ahead of the reveal, bookmakers had ranked the frontrunners for this year’s award as an avant-garde author, an innovative Chinese writer, and Krasznahorkai himself.

The Nobel Award in Literature has been given on 117 past events since 1901. Recent winners include Annie Ernaux, the musician, the Tanzanian-born writer, Louise Glück, Handke and Tokarczuk. Last year’s recipient was Han Kang, the Korean novelist most famous for her acclaimed novel.

Krasznahorkai will ceremonially accept the prize medal and certificate in a function in winter in the Swedish capital.

More to follow