2023 Nobel Prize In Literature Goes To Jon Fosse, 64 Years Old Norwegian Author
Nobel Prize in literature goes to Jon Fosse, who is 64 years old Norwegian author, “for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable”. Among his works are the books Aliss at the Fire, Melancholy, and A Shining, which are all part of the Septology series.
Author:Paula M. GrahamReviewer:Rhyley CarneyOct 06, 20233K Shares76.9K Views
Nobel Prize in literature goes to Jon Fosse, who is 64 years old Norwegian author, "for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable". Among his works are the books Aliss at the Fire, Melancholy, and A Shining, which are all part of the Septology series.
Even though Fosse mostly wrote in Norwegian, his works have been put together and translated into English and other languages. The Nobel Prize was given to him for everything he had done. Fosse has written more than 30 plays, along with novels, short stories, books for children, poetry, and articles.
Nobel Prize In Literature Goes To Jon Fosse
The Swedish Academy announced on Thursday that the Nobel Prize in Literature for 2023 will go to Norwegian playwright Jon Fosse. His plays are very famous around the world right now.
Jon Fosse, a Norwegian writer whose work is written in spare Nordic language about birth, death, faith, and other “elemental stuff” of life, won the Nobel Prize for Literature on Thursday. Prize organizers said that Fosse's writing gives “voice to the unsayable.”
The author and playwright said that the prize was for “literature that first and foremost aims to be literature, without other considerations”- this idea is shown in dozens of mysterious plays, stories, and novels, including a seven-volume epic made up of a single sentence.
Anders Olsson, who is in charge of the Nobel Literature committee, told The Associated Press that Fosse's work, which comes from his Norwegian background, “focuses on human insecurity and anxiety. The basic choices you make in life, very elemental stuff.”
Fosse, who is one of the most-performed playwrights in his country, said that he had "cautiously prepared" himself for ten years to hear that he had won.
In answer to the news, Fosse thanked everyone and said:
“„I am overwhelmed and grateful. I see this as an award to the literature that first and foremost aims to be literature, without other considerations.- Jon Fosse
He also told the Norwegian public radio station NRK that he was "surprised but also not" to have won.
“„I’ve been part of the discussion for 10 years and have more and less tentatively prepared myself that this could happen.- Jon Fosse
When Fosse's fiction editor, Jacques Testard, heard the news, he said:
“„He is an exceptional writer, who has managed to find a totally unique way of writing fiction. As his Norwegian editor Cecilie Seiness put it recently in an interview: if you open any book by Jon and read a couple of lines, it couldn’t be written by anyone else.- Jacques Testard
“„His fiction is incantatory, mystical, and rooted in the landscape of the western fjords where he grew up. It’s very important to remember that he writes in Nynorsk or New Norwegian, a minority language in Norway, a political act in itself. He’s also an exceptional playwright and poet. He’s an incredible mind, and it couldn’t have happened to a nicer person.- Jacques Testard
Anders Olsson, who is the head of the Nobel committee, said that Fosse was an innovator because he was able to make people feel like they had lost their way, which strangely leads to a deeper experience that is similar to a religious one. The style of Fosse's writing is what makes it stand out. He often says more by what he doesn't say than by what he does.
Samuel Beckett is often compared to him because he has a minimalist style and uses simple words, rhythm, melody, and silence to get his point across. "Boathouse" (1989) and "Melancholy" I and II (1995–1996) are two of his most important works.
Jon Fosse, who is 64 years old, had been talked about as a possible Nobel winner for several years before he won the award. His large body of work includes plays, novels, poem collections, essays, children's books, and translations, most of which are written in Norwegian Nynorsk, one of Norway's written languages. Fosse is known as one of the world's most performed playwrights, and his writing is also becoming more and more popular.
Fosse was raised in a strict Lutheran household, but he became a Catholic in 2013. After studying literature for a while, he wrote his first book, "Red, Black," in 1983, which was known for its complicated story. His most recent work, "Septology," is a three-volume, seven-part semi-autobiographical magnum opus with no full stops. It has 1,250 pages and was named for the 2022 International Booker Prize for the third volume.
Even though Fosse had trouble making money as a writer in the early 1990s, he found that he loved writing plays, which led to the creation of "Someone is Going to Come." After that, in 1994, his play "And We'll Never Be Partted" was praised around the world.
About 50 different languages have translated Fosse's work, and his plays have been presented more than a thousand times around the world. He said that his writing was more about people than about standard plots and characters.
The prize for the Nobel Prize in Literature is a medal and 11 million Swedish kronor, which is about $1 million. On December 10, the anniversary of scientist Alfred Nobel's death in 1896, King Carl XVI Gustaf gave the Nobel Prize to Jon Fosse in a public ceremony in Stockholm.
After the #MeToo scandal in 2018, the Swedish Academy has been working towards a more global and gender-equal writing prize. This award for Jon Fosse's work shows how serious they are about this.
Final Words
The Swedish Academy revealed in Stockholm on Thursday that the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature will go to Jon Fosse for "his innovative plays and prose that give voice to things that can't be said."
The group praised the author's style, which has become known as "Fosse minimalism."
His masterpiece, "Septology," is made up of seven parts from three books that are all put together into one book. It tells the story of an old painter who lives alone and struggles with religion, identity, art, and family life.
Paula M. Graham
Author
Rhyley Carney
Reviewer
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