The Swedish Academy has announced South Korean author Han Kang the winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in literature.
Her “intense prose” that “exposes the fragility of human life” won her the global award.
This recognition underscores her significant impact on contemporary literature and her ability to delve deep into the complexities of human existence.
Han Kang is perhaps best known around the world for her acclaimed novel “The Vegetarian,” which tells the unconventional story of a woman who believes she is transforming into a plant. This groundbreaking work was translated into English in 2015 and has captivated readers with its thought-provoking themes and vivid imagery.
The selection process for the Nobel Prize in literature is rigorous and secretive.
The 18-member Swedish Academy is responsible for nominating candidates, a task that involves submissions from its members, past laureates, presidents of literature societies, and professors of literature and linguistics. These nominations remain confidential for 50 years.
By spring, a smaller committee narrows the candidates down to five, which are then presented to the Academy for deliberation throughout the summer and early fall.
This year, the Nobel Prize in literature also recognized Norwegian novelist and playwright Jon Fosse, who received the 2023 prize for his works that “give voice to the unsayable.” Although the Nobel honours a writer’s entire body of work, the Academy specifically spotlighted his multivolume series “Septology” as his masterwork. This ambitious narrative, characterized by a stream of consciousness style devoid of sentence breaks, was published in the United States by Transit Books.
The literary community has witnessed remarkable talent in recent years, with French writer Annie Ernaux receiving the prestigious accolade in 2022, and Tanzanian writer Abdulrazak Gurnah awarded in 2021.