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The world-renowned Nobel Prize in Literature for this year has been awarded to from Hungary author László Krasznahorkai, as declared by the Nobel awarding body.

The Jury highlighted the 71-year-old's "powerful and prophetic oeuvre that, amidst cataclysmic terror, confirms the power of creative expression."

A Legacy of Bleak Narratives

Krasznahorkai is renowned for his dystopian, melancholic works, which have earned numerous prizes, including the 2019 National Book Award for literature in translation and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

A number of of his novels, including his titles his debut and another major work, have been made into cinematic works.

Early Beginnings

Originating in a Hungarian locale in 1954, Krasznahorkai first rose to prominence with his 1985 first book his seminal novel, a bleak and hypnotic portrayal of a disintegrating village society.

The novel would later earn the Man Booker International Prize honor in English many years later, in the 2010s.

An Unconventional Literary Style

Frequently labeled as postmodernist, Krasznahorkai is renowned for his lengthy, intricate phrases (the twelve chapters of his novel each are a single paragraph), dystopian and somber themes, and the kind of relentless force that has led critics to draw parallels with literary giants like Kafka.

The novel was famously made into a seven-hour movie by filmmaker Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a lengthy creative partnership.

"Krasznahorkai is a remarkable author of grand narratives in the central European heritage that extends through Kafka to Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdist elements and grotesque excess," stated the Nobel chair, leader of the Nobel panel.

He described Krasznahorkai’s writing as having "developed towards … flowing structure with extended, meandering lines devoid of periods that has become his trademark."

Critical Acclaim

Sontag has referred to the author as "the contemporary Hungarian genius of the apocalyptic," while the writer W.G. Sebald commended the broad relevance of his perspective.

Just a small number of Krasznahorkai’s works have been translated into the English language. The reviewer James Wood once remarked that his books "circulate like rare currency."

Worldwide Travels

Krasznahorkai’s literary path has been influenced by exploration as much as by literature. He first left the communist Hungary in 1987, residing a period in West Berlin for a grant, and later drew inspiration from Eastern Asia – especially Mongolia and China – for works such as The Prisoner of Urga, and his book on China.

While writing this novel, he travelled widely across European nations and stayed in Ginsberg's New York home, stating the legendary poet's backing as essential to finishing the book.

Krasznahorkai on His Work

Questioned how he would explain his writing in an conversation, Krasznahorkai answered: "Letters; then from these characters, vocabulary; then from these terms, some concise lines; then further lines that are more extended, and in the chief extremely lengthy phrases, for the period of 35 years. Beauty in language. Enjoyment in despair."

On fans finding his work for the initial encounter, he noted: "If there are individuals who have not yet read my books, I would refrain from advising anything to peruse to them; instead, I’d suggest them to go out, rest somewhere, perhaps by the banks of a creek, with no obligations, a clear mind, just being in silence like stones. They will sooner or later meet someone who has previously read my works."

Nobel Prize Context

Prior to the declaration, bookmakers had ranked the top contenders for this annual honor as the Chinese writer, an avant garde Chinese novelist, and Krasznahorkai.

The Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded on over a hundred previous occasions since 1901. Recent winners include Ernaux, Bob Dylan, Gurnah, Glück, Handke and the Polish author. The previous year's recipient was the South Korean writer, the from South Korea author renowned for The Vegetarian.

Krasznahorkai will formally be presented with the award and diploma in a ceremony in the month of December in Stockholm.

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