Tomas Transtromer wins Nobel literature prize

Ambrosia

Grand Duchess
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 4, 2009
Messages
26,963
Reaction score
7,378
Location
In the Castle, of course.
Famous Swedish poet, Tomas Transtromer, has been awarded the Swedish academy's Nobel literature prize today.


Reuter's article covering the Nobel literature prize award.


Nice monetary payment of 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.45 million) along with the award, too. And folks say poetry doesn't pay. ;)

I am glad he received the recognition while he is still alive. Very nice. :)
 

Blarg

Banned
Joined
Oct 17, 2009
Messages
2,497
Reaction score
396
Location
13th of never
Well, I'm intrigued. Never read one of his poems. I'll have to search them out.
 

juniper

Always curious.
Requiescat In Pace
Registered
Joined
Mar 1, 2010
Messages
4,129
Reaction score
678
Location
Forever on the island
I'm going to look for some too. Were there English translations? I'm afraid my Swedish is quite limited ... non-existent, you might even say.

Which makes me think: How does the Nobel prize committee read all of the nominations, in different languages? Is that a silly question? I'm going to go see if I can find out.
 

juniper

Always curious.
Requiescat In Pace
Registered
Joined
Mar 1, 2010
Messages
4,129
Reaction score
678
Location
Forever on the island
This is what I found quickly:

The 107 Nobel Laureates in Literature from 1901 to 2010 have been writing/writes in the following languages:

English 26
French 13
German 13
Spanish 11
Italian 6
Swedish 6
Russian 5
Polish 4
Norwegian 3
Danish 3
Greek 2
Japanese 2
Arabic 1
Bengalis 1
Chinese 1
Czech 1
Finnish 1
Hebrew 1
Hungarian 1
Icelandic 1
Occitan 1
Portuguese 1
Serbo-Croatian 1
Turkish 1
Yiddish 1


http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/shortfacts.html
 
Last edited:

kborsden

Has a few recurring issues
Kind Benefactor
Poetry Book Collaborator
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 4, 2006
Messages
6,170
Reaction score
1,667
Location
Where opinions have a distinct aroma.
I like his verse (the 2 examples you linked to, Patty), gloriously dark and cerebral -- and that he's buddies with Bly is no shocker either after having read them (also seeing as Bly served as translator). Robert Bly has a great legacy to leave the world, having introduced the US publishing and academic literary powerhouses to some of the finest international poetry, effectively creating the first steps to an international poetry community beyond national identity and borders.

I wish I knew more than a spattering of Swedish to really appreciate them as there is always something lost in translation, in fact I don't believe a true translation can exist (having often translated from German to Dutch, Dutch to German, both to English, English to both) only a new poem based heavily on another.

Ok, that's it -- decided. I'm off to learn some Scandinavian.
 
Last edited: