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The coveted Nobel Prize in Literature for this year has been granted to the Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai, as announced by the Nobel awarding body.

The Academy highlighted the seventy-one-year-old's "gripping and imaginative oeuvre that, amidst apocalyptic terror, reasserts the force of art."

An Esteemed Career of Bleak Writing

Krasznahorkai is known for his dystopian, somber works, which have garnered several awards, such as the 2019 National Book Award for translated literature and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

A number of of his books, among them his novels Satantango and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been turned into movies.

Initial Success

Originating in the Hungarian town of Gyula in the mid-1950s, Krasznahorkai first gained recognition with his mid-80s debut novel his seminal novel, a dark and captivating depiction of a collapsing countryside settlement.

The work would go on to earn the Man Booker International Prize award in the English language many years later, in 2013.

A Distinctive Writing Approach

Commonly referred to as postmodern, Krasznahorkai is renowned for his lengthy, intricate sentences (the dozen sections of Satantango each consist of a one paragraph), dystopian and somber motifs, and the kind of persistent intensity that has led literary experts to draw parallels with Kafka, Melville, and Gogol.

This work was notably made into a seven-hour movie by cinematic artist Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a enduring artistic collaboration.

"The author is a great epic writer in the European literary tradition that traces back to Kafka to the Austrian writer, and is characterised by the absurd and grotesque exaggeration," said the committee chair, leader of the Nobel panel.

He described Krasznahorkai’s prose as having "developed towards … flowing syntax with lengthy, intricate lines lacking periods that has become his hallmark."

Critical Acclaim

Susan Sontag has called the author as "the contemporary Hungarian expert of apocalypse," while Sebald praised the universality of his perspective.

A handful of Krasznahorkai’s books have been translated into the English language. The critic Wood once wrote that his books "get passed around like rare currency."

Global Influences

Krasznahorkai’s professional journey has been molded by journeys as much as by literature. He first departed from socialist the country in 1987, spending a period in the city for a grant, and later drew inspiration from east Asia – particularly Mongolia and China – for novels such as one of his titles, and another novel.

While writing War and War, he explored across Europe and lived for a time in Ginsberg's New York home, describing the famous writer's assistance as crucial to finishing the novel.

Author's Perspective

Asked how he would describe his writing in an discussion, Krasznahorkai said: "Characters; then from letters, words; then from these words, some brief phrases; then further lines that are more extended, and in the chief very long paragraphs, for the duration of 35 years. Beauty in writing. Enjoyment in hell."

On readers discovering his writing for the first time, he added: "Should there be readers who have not yet read my works, I would refrain from advising any specific title to explore to them; on the contrary, I’d suggest them to step out, settle in a place, perhaps by the edge of a stream, with nothing to do, no thoughts, just being in tranquility like boulders. They will in time meet an individual who has already read my books."

Literature Prize History

Ahead of the reveal, betting agencies had ranked the favourites for this year’s award as the Chinese writer, an experimental from China novelist, and the Hungarian.

The Nobel Award in Literature has been given on 117 prior instances since 1901. Current winners include the French author, the musician, Gurnah, Louise Glück, Peter Handke and Tokarczuk. Last year’s honoree was Han Kang, the Korean novelist best known for her acclaimed novel.

Krasznahorkai will officially be presented with the medal and diploma in a function in December in Stockholm, Sweden.

Updates to come