1976 Nobel Prize in Literature
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- 21 October 1976 (announcement)
- 10 December 1976
(ceremony)
 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature | |
|---|---|
| Saul Bellow | |
_(cropped).jpg) "for the human understanding and subtle analysis of contemporary culture that are combined in his work" | |
| Date |
|
| Location | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Presented by | Swedish Academy |
| First award | 1901 |
| Website | Official website |
The 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Canadian-American novelist Saul Bellow (1915–2005) "for the human understanding and subtle analysis of contemporary culture that are combined in his work".[1][2][3] He is the sixth American recipient of the prize. The previous American recipient was John Steinbeck in 1962.[3]
Bellow made his debut with the novel Dangling Man in 1944, but his literary breakthrough came in 1953 with The Adventures of Augie March. Considered one of the innovators of the American novel, he gained wider readership with Herzog (1964), Mr. Sammler's Planet (1970), and Humboldt's Gift (1975). His themes include the disorientation of contemporary society, and the ability of people to overcome their frailty and achieve greatness or awareness. Bellow saw many flaws in modern civilization, and its ability to foster madness, materialism and misleading knowledge. Often his characters are Jewish and have a sense of alienation or otherness.[3][4] He won a Pulitzer Prize in 1976 and the only writer to win the National Book Award for Fiction three times.[5]
Deliberations
Bellow was first nominated for the prize in 1967.[6] He was shortlisted as one of the final candidates for the 1973, 1974 and 1975 prizes.[7][8][9] In 1973, Bellow was competing against the subsequently awarded Australian novelist Patrick White after Nobel committee chairman Karl Ragnar Gierow had recommended Bellow as his first proposal for that year's prize.[10] In 1974 and 1975, the committee again recommended Bellow as a main contender for the prize, in 1974 alternatively for a shared prize with Norman Mailer.[8][9]
Reactions
Personal reactions
At a news conference in Chicago, Saul Bellow spoke of his fears and humility at being awarded with the prize. He said, "A primitive part of me, the child in me is delighted. The adult in me is skeptical."[3] He also expressed his hope that the award would not be a burden, as it was for John Steinbeck, who died in 1968. He said, "I knew Steinbeck quite well, and I remember how burdened he was by the Nobel Prize. He felt that he had to give a better account of himself than he had done."[3]
Asked by the press what he would do with the prize money, Bellow said, "I don’t have any plans for the money. At this rate--considering the publicity and attention--my heirs will get the money in a day or two."[3]
National reactions
Bellow had been a favourite to win the prize in previous years and was a clear favourite in 1976.[3] Before the announcement, a Swedish newspaper predicted that Bellow would be awarded the 1976 literature prize.[3] Malcolm Bradbury of University of East Anglia stated that it would "be hard to fault the choice for 1976, Saul Bellow; difficult to find a contemporary writer who shows the same richness and variety, along with same sharp modernity, of achievement".[11]
