Canadian poet, essayist and translator Anne Carson has been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature.
The 76-year-old Carson is known for works that combine poetry, prose and academic scholarship, transcending the traditional boundaries between these genres.
The Nobel Committee said Carson was honored “for her bold and innovative work, which, through a playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature.”
The Nobel Prize in Literature recognizes an entire body of artistic work and is considered one of the most prestigious awards in the literary world. This year’s laureate will receive 12 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to approximately £900,000 or $1.2 million.
The Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, Ingrid Carlberg, said she informed Carson of the award by phone shortly before the public announcement, according to the BBC.
“All she had time to tell me was that she is currently in Iceland, where she is listening to the wind,” Carlberg said, adding that Carson was surprised by the news but very happy.
Anders Olsson, chair of the Nobel Committee for Literature, praised the way Carson has moved away from lyric poetry closely tied to personal narrative and introduced new forms into contemporary literature.
According to Olsson, her writing has produced playful and ironic works that move between classical and modern poetry, as well as across different genres and forms of art.
Among Carson’s best-known works are The Glass Essay, Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse, Nox, Float and The Beauty of the Husband: A Fictional Essay in 29 Tangos.
Carson has also translated works of ancient Greek literature and has been a professor of classics for more than 30 years.
