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1974 Nobel Prize in Literature

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1974 Nobel Prize in Literature
Eyvind Johnson and
Harry Martinson
Johnson "for a narrative art, farseeing in lands and ages, in the service of freedom," and Martinson "for writings that catch the dewdrop and reflect the cosmos."
Date
  • 3 October 1974 (announcement)
  • 10 December 1974
    (ceremony)
LocationStockholm, Sweden
Presented bySwedish Academy
First award1901
WebsiteOfficial website
← 1973 · Nobel Prize in Literature · 1975 →

The 1974 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded jointly to Swedish authors Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976) "for a narrative art, farseeing in lands and ages, in the service of freedom" and Harry Martinson (1904–1978) "for writings that catch the dewdrop and reflect the cosmos."[1] The winners were announced in October 1974 by Karl Ragnar Gierow, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, and later sparked heavy criticisms from the literary world.[2]

At the award ceremony on 10 December 1974, Karl Ragnar Gierow of the Swedish Academy said that Johnson and Martinson

"are representative of the many proletarian writers or working-class poets who, on a wide front, broke into our literature, not to ravage and plunder, but to enrich it with their fortunes. Their arrival meant an influx of experience and creative energy, the value of which can hardly be exaggerated."[3]

It is the fourth (after 1904, 1917, and 1966), and as of yet last, occasion when the Nobel Prize in Literature has been shared between two individuals.[4]

Laureates

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Authors Eyvind Johnson, Annicka Jönsson, Harry Martinson and Gabriel Jönsson at a writers' meeting.

Eyvind Johnson

[edit]
Main article: Eyvind Johnson

Individual, moral, societal, and political issues are the recurring themes in Eyvind Johnson's literary works. De fyra främlingarna ("The Four Strangers"), a collection of short stories, served as his literary debut in 1924. Romanen om Olof ("The Novel about Olof"), his four autobiographical novels that appeared between 1934 and 1937, is regarded as one of his most important works. In the trilogy about Krilon (1941–1943), in which the world is represented allegorically, he took a strong stand against fascism and nazism of his day.[5] His other famous works include Strändernas svall ("Return to Ithaca", 1946), Drömmar om rosor och eld ("Dreams of Roses and Fire", 1949), and Hans nådes tid ("The Days of His Grace", 1960).[6]

Harry Martinson

[edit]
Main article: Harry Martinson

The poetry and prose by Harry Martinson are both written in a unique and passionate style. His experiences as a young seaman and hobo, as well as his difficult and unloving childhood, are among the themes. He cares much about nature and is interested in science, which is reflected in his philosophical views and depictions of the natural world. Martinson's most well-known composition, the Aniara poetry collection from 1956, tells the story of a spaceship that departs from Earth following a horrific nuclear war but subsequently deviates from its intended path.[7] His other notable works include Kap Farväl ("Cape Farewell", 1933), Nässlorna blomma ("Flowering Nettle", 1935), and Vägen till Klockrike ("The Road", 1948).[8]

Deliberations

[edit]

Nominations

[edit]

Eyvind Johnson was first nominated for the prize in 1962 and then every year until 1971.[9] During this period Johnson declined to be considered for the prize as he himself was a member of the Swedish Academy's Nobel committee (he resigned from the committee in 1972).[10][11] Harry Martinson was first nominated in 1964, and had by 1973 been nominated twelve times by six different nominators.[12][13] In 1965, Nobel committee member Erik Lindegren suggested the idea of a shared prize to the two authors: "They are really the opposite of everything provinsional."[13]

In the early 1970's Johnson and Martinson were nominated individually for the prize by their colleague in the Swedish Academy, the 1951 Nobel Prize laureate Pär Lagerkvist, and Nobel committee member Henry Olsson nominated them for a shared prize in 1970.[13] In 1974 Johnson and Martinson were nominated by Academy members Johannes Edfelt and Pär Lagerkvist, and Johnson also by three other external nominators. Nobel committee member Artur Lundkvist however strongly opposed that the Academy should award the Nobel prize to its own members and had in 1972 stated that the Academy should "think very carefully" before awarding a Swedish author.[14] In his memoirs, committee member Lars Gyllensten claimed that Johnson and Martinson had been proposed from outside the Academy and justified the decision to award them, arguing that "The consequence of principally excluding members of the Academy as prize candidates would mean that the Academy could only elect second rate authors."[15]

In total, the Nobel Committee received nominations for 101 writers, same amount of nominees as the preceding year.[16] Twenty-two authors were first-time nominees, among them Rafael Alberti, Gwen Bristow, Kamala Surayya-Das, Ralph Ellison, Armand Gatti, Uwe Johnson, Herbert Marcuse, Czesław Miłosz (awarded in 1980), R. K. Narayan, Octavio Paz (awarded in 1990), Francis Ponge, Kenzaburō Ōe (awarded in 1994), Harold Pinter (awarded in 2005), Stephen Spender, Antonio Buero Vallejo and Louise Weiss. The highest number of nominations was for Jewish author Elie Wiesel (awarded the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize). The oldest nominee was Estonian poet Marie Under (aged 91) and the youngest was Chinese poet Chen Minghua (aged 24). Nine of the nominees were women namely Gwen Bristow, Kamala Surayya-Das, Argentina Diaz Lozano, Nadine Gordimer (awarded in 1991), Doris Lessing (awarded in 2007), Astrid Lindgren, Victoria Ocampo, Marie Under and Louise Weiss – the highest number of female contenders in a year.[16]

The authors Martin Armstrong, Herbert Ernest Bates, Buddhadeva Bose, Emma L. Brock, Carl Jacob Burckhardt, Arthur J. Burks, Rosario Castellanos, Cyril Connolly, Julius Evola, Marieluise Fleißer, Georgette Heyer, David Jones, Margaret Leech, Lois Lenski, Eric Linklater, Walter Lippmann, Sigurður Nordal, Howard Pease, Olive Higgins Prouty, Maria Ossowska, Anne Sexton, Jacqueline Susann, Jan Tschichold, Herman Van Breda and Victor E. van Vriesland died in 1974 without having been nominated for the prize.

Temporal list of nominees and their nominators for the prize
No. Nominee Country Genre(s) Nominator(s)
1 Rafael Alberti  Spain poetry, drama, memoir Johannes Edfelt (1904–1997)
2 Vicente Aleixandre (1898–1984)  Spain poetry
  • Dámaso Alonso (1898–1990)
  • Wolfgang Bernard Fleischmann (1928–1987)
  • Norman Fulton (?)
  • Emilio González López (1903–1991)
  • Alexander Szogyi (1929–2007)
  • Pedro Laín Entralgo (1908–2001)
  • Rafael Lapesa (1908–2001)
  • Charles W. Wendell (1930–2015)
3 Riccardo Bacchelli (1891–1985)  Italy novel, drama, essays Enrico Cerulli (1898–1988)
4 Saul Bellow (1915–2005)  Canada
 United States 		novel, short story, memoir, essays
5 Louis Paul Boon (1912–1979)  Belgium novel, essays, short story, poetry
6 Johan Borgen (1902–1979)  Norway novel, literary criticism Ebba Haslund (1917–2009)
7 Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986)  Argentina poetry, essays, translation, short story
8 Gwen Bristow (1903–1980)  United States novel, poetry, essays Lorenz Graham (1902–1989)
9 Miodrag Bulatović (1930–1991)  Yugoslavia novel, short story, drama, essays Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters
10 Anthony Burgess (1917–1993)  United Kingdom novel, poetry, drama, screenplay, autobiography,
biography, essays, literary criticism, translation 		Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
11 Elias Canetti (1905–1994)  Bulgaria
 United Kingdom 		novel, drama, memoir, essays
  • Manfred Durzak (born 1938)
  • Keith Spalding (1913–2002)
12 Camilo José Cela (1916–2002)  Spain novel, short story, essay, poetry, drama, memoir Juan Contreras López de Ayala (1893–1978)
13 André Chamson (1900–1983)  France novel, essays
  • Yannis Koutsocheras (1904–1994)
  • Yves Gandon (1899–1975)
  • Armand Lunel (1892–1977)
  • Guy Nairay (1914–1999)
14 Chen Minghua (born 1950)  China poetry, essays Emeterio Barcelon Barcelo-Soriano (1897–1978)
15 Sri Chinmoy (1931–2007)  India
 United States 		poetry, drama, short story, essays, songwriting
  • Joseph Axelrod (1910–1974)
  • Karl Kroeber (1926–2009)
  • Peter Pitzele (born 1942)
16 Adolfo Costa du Rels (1891–1980)  Bolivia novel, short story, drama, poetry, essays Humberto Palza (1900–1975)
17 Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca (1914–2008)  Turkey poetry Yaşar Nabi Nayır (1908–1981)
18 Kamala Surraya-Das (1934–2009)  India novel, short story, poetry, memoir, essays K. P. Kannan (?)
19 Argentina Díaz Lozano (1909–1999)  Honduras short story, poetry, essays, biography
  • Luis Antonio Díaz Vasconcelos (1908–?)
  • José Luis Cifuentes (1908–1981)
20 Carlos Drummond de Andrade (1902–1987)  Brazil poetry, essays Maria Alice Barroso (1926–2012)
21 Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–1990)   Switzerland drama, novel, short story, essays
22 Ralph Ellison (1913–1994)  United States novel, short story, essays, literary criticism Henri Peyre (1901–1988)
23 Odysseas Elytis (1911–1996)  Greece poetry, essays, translation Nobel Committee
24 Rabbe Enckell (1903–1974)  Finland short story, poetry
25 Hans Magnus Enzensberger (1929–2022)  West Germany poetry, essays, translation Sven Skydsgaard (1934–1979)
26 Salvador Espriu (1913–1985)  Spain drama, novel, poetry
27 Max Frisch (1911–1991)   Switzerland novel, drama
28 Armand Gatti (1924–2017)  France drama, screenplay, poetry, essays Volker Klotz (1930–2023)
29 William Golding (1911–1993)  United Kingdom novel, poetry, drama, essays Nobel Committee
30 Nadine Gordimer (1923–2014)  South Africa novel, short story, essay, drama Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
31 Julien Gracq (1910–2007)  France novel, drama, poetry, essays Georges Matoré (1908–1998)
32 Günter Grass (1927–2015)  West Germany novel, drama, poetry, essays Manfred Windfuhr (born 1930)
33 Robert Graves (1895–1985)  United Kingdom history, novel, poetry, literary criticism, essays A. Norman Jeffares (1920–2005)
34 Julien Green (1900–1998)  France novel, autobiography, essays
35 Graham Greene (1904–1991)  United Kingdom novel, short story, autobiography, essays
  • Mira Mihelič (1912–1985)
  • Mary Renault (1905–1983)
  • Herbert Morgan Waidson (1916–1988)
  • Walter Weiss (1927–2004)
  • Kázmér Géza Werner (1900–1985)
36 Jorge Guillén (1893–1984)  Spain poetry, literary criticism Henri Peyre (1901–1988)
37 G. Floran Eugène Ionesco (1909–1994)
38 Paavo Haavikko (1931–2008)  Finland poetry, drama, essays Eeva Kilpi (born 1928)
39 William Heinesen (1900–1991)  Faroe Islands poetry, short story, novel
  • Gustav Albeck (1906–1995)
  • Peter Foote (1924–2009)
  • William Glyn Jones (1928–2014)
  • Duncan M. Mennie (1909–1998)
  • Niels Clausen Lukman (1907–2003)
40 Vladimír Holan (1905–1980)  Czechoslovakia poetry, essays Nobel Committee
41 Gyula Illyés (1902–1983)  Hungary poetry, novel, drama, essays
42 Eugène Ionesco (1909–1994)  Romania
 France 		drama, essays Denis de Rougemont (1906–1985)
43 Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976)  Sweden novel, short story
44 Uwe Johnson (1934–1984)  East Germany novel, short story, essays, translation Shiela St. Clair (?)
45 Ferenc Juhász (1928–2015)  Hungary poetry Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
46 Yaşar Kemal (1923–2015)  Turkey novel, essays Nobel Committee
47 Brendan Kennelly (1936–2021)  Ireland novel, poetry, essays, translation John B. Keane (1928–2002)
48 Arthur Koestler (1905–1983)  Hungary
 United Kingdom 		novel, autobiography, essays George Mikes (1912–1987)
49 Miroslav Krleža (1893–1981)  Croatia
 Yugoslavia 		poetry, drama, short story, novel, essays Nobel Committee
50 Siegfried Lenz (1926–2014)  West Germany novel, short story, essays, drama
51 Doris Lessing (1919–2013)  United Kingdom novel, short story, memoirs, drama, poetry, essays Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
52 Astrid Lindgren (1907–2002)  Sweden novel, short story, drama, screenplay Adolf März (1918–1987)
53 Väinö Linna (1920–1992)  Finland novel Eeva Kilpi (born 1928)
54 Robert Lowell (1917–1977)  United States poetry, translation Hans Galinsky (1909–1991)
55 Salvador de Madariaga (1886–1978)  Spain essays, history, law, novel Julián Gorkin (1901–1987)
56 Norman Mailer (1923–2007)  United States novel, short story, poetry, essays, biography, drama, screenplay Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
57 Bernard Malamud (1914–1986)  United States novel, short story Nobel Committee
58 Eduardo Mallea (1903–1982)  Argentina novel, short story, essays, literary criticism Manuel Durán (1925–2020)
59 André Malraux (1901–1976)  France novel, essays, literary criticism
  • Lloyd James Austin (1915–1994)
  • Henning Fenger (1921–1985)
  • Göran Hermerén (born 1938)
  • Jan Kott (1914–2001)
  • Maija Lehtonen (1924–2015)
  • Henri Peyre (1901–1988)
  • Magnus von Platen (1920–2020)
  • John Henry Raleigh (1920–2001)
  • Michael Riffaterre (1924–2006)
  • Laurent Versini (1932–2021)
60 Frederick Manfred (1912–1994)  United States novel, essays
61 Herbert Marcuse (1898–1979)  West Germany
 United States 		philosophy, essays Hans Mayer (1907–2001)
62 Harry Martinson (1904–1978)  Sweden poetry, novel, drama, essays
63 Segismundo Masel (1895–1985)  Argentina essays Antonio de Tornes Ballesteros (?)
64 László Mécs (1895–1978)  Hungary poetry, essays Watson Kirkconnell (1895–1977)
65 Henri Michaux (1899–1984)  Belgium
 France 		poetry, essays Nobel Committee
66 Czesław Miłosz (1911–2004)  Poland poetry, essays, novel, translation Algirdas Landsbergis (1924–2004)
67 Eugenio Montale (1896–1981)  Italy poetry, translation
68 Alberto Moravia (1907–1990)  Italy novel, literary criticism, essays, drama Jacques Robichez (1914–1999)
69 Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)  Russia
 United States 		novel, short story, poetry, drama, translation, literary criticism, memoir
70 V. S. Naipaul (1932–2018)  Trinidad and Tobago
 United Kingdom 		novel, short story, essays Artur Lundkvist (1906–1991)
71 R. K. Narayan (1906–2001)  India novel, short story, essays
72 Mikhail Naimy (1889–1988)  Lebanon poetry, drama, short story, novel, autobiography, literary criticism Toufic Fahd (1923–2009)
73 Victoria Ocampo (1890–1979)  Argentina essays, literary criticism, biography
74 Kenzaburō Ōe (1935–2023)  Japan novel, short story, essays Kōjirō Serizawa (1896–1993)
75 Germán Pardo García (1902–1991)  Colombia
 Mexico 		poetry José María Acosta Acosta (?)
76 Octavio Paz (1914–1998)  Mexico poetry, essays
77 José María Pemán (1897–1981)  Spain poetry, drama, novel, essays, screenplay
  • Emeterio Barcelon Barcelo-Soriano (1897–1978)
  • Manuel Halcón (1900–1989)
  • Fabio Amable Mota (1893–1975)
  • Mariano Lebrón Saviñón (1922–2014)
78 Harold Pinter (1930–2008)  United Kingdom drama, screenplay
  • Paul Goetsch (1934–2018)
  • Gerhard Nickel (1928–2015)
79 Francis Ponge (1899–1988)  France poetry, essays Michael Riffaterre (1924–2006)
80 Zayn al-ʻĀbidīn Rahnamā (1894–1990)  Iran history, essays, translation
81 Yannis Ritsos (1909–1990)  Greece poetry, songwriting Per Wästberg (born 1933)
82 Tadeusz Rózewicz (1921–2014)  Poland poetry, drama, translation
83 Jaroslav Seifert (1901–1986)  Czechoslovakia poetry, memoir, translation Ľubomír Ďurovič (born 1925)
84 Léopold Sédar Senghor (1906–2001)  Senegal poetry, essays Roger Asselineau (1915–2002)
85 Ignazio Silone (1900–1978)  Italy novel, short story, essays, drama
86 Georges Simenon (1903–1989)  Belgium novel, short story, memoir Axel Springer (1912–1985)
87 Claude Simon (1913–2005)  France novel, essays
88 Isaac Bashevis Singer (1902–1991)  Poland
 United States 		novel, short story, autobiography, essays
  • Jules Brody (1928–2021)
  • Julien Hirshaut (1908–1983)
  • Lothar Kahn (1922–1990)
  • Percy Matenko (1901–1987)
89 Stephen Spender (1909–1995)  United States novel, short story, poetry, drama, essays, literary criticism Barbara Hardy (1924–2016)
90 Zaharia Stancu (1902–1974)  Romania poetry, novel, philosophy, essays
  • Alf Lombard (1902–1996)
  • Aatos Ojala (1919–1987)
91 Isidor Feinstein Stone (1907–1989)  United States essays Joseph Axelrod (1910–1974)
92 Abraham Sutzkever (1913–2010)  Belarus
 Israel 		poetry Joseph Leftwich (1892–1984)
93 Pratap Narayan Tandon (born 1935)  India novel, essays Kesari Narayan Shukla (?)
94 Marie Under (1883–1980)  Estonia poetry Ants Oras (1900–1982)
95 Antonio Buero Vallejo (1916–2000)  Spain drama Juan Contreras López de Ayala (1893–1978)
96 José García Villa (1908–1997)  Philippines
 United States 		poetry, essays Purita Kalaw Ledesma (1914–2005)
97 Gerard Walschap (1898–1989)  Belgium novel, drama, essays
98 Louise Weiss (1893–1983)  France novel, drama, memoir, essays
  • Jacques Chabannes (1900–1994)
  • Paul Mousset (1907–1981)
  • Étienne Wolff (1904–1996)
99 Erico Verissimo (1905–1975)  Brazil novel, short story, autobiography, essays, translation Ernesto Leme (1896–1986)
100 Sándor Weöres (1913–1989)  Hungary poetry, translation Áron Kibédi Varga (1930–2018)
101 Elie Wiesel (1928–2016)  Romania
 United States 		memoir, essays, novel, drama

Prize decision

[edit]

The previous year, the Swedish Academy had discussed if it was suitable for the Academy to award Swedish authors, following the proposals of Johnson, Martinson and novelist Vilhelm Moberg (1898-1973) as candidates for the prize. Concerns had been raised that awarding a Swedish author would harm the international reputation of the Nobel prize and the Swedish Academy's prestige. In a report dated 5 June 1973, Nobel committee chairman Karl Ragnar Gierow wrote on the matter that Johnson, Martinson and Moberg were all worthy recipients of the prize and of the same literary class as the shortlisted candidates for the 1973 prize. Gierow argued that excluding Swedish persons from being awarded the Nobel prize had no support in the statues of the Nobel Foundation and that Alfred Nobel in his will had specifically written that no regard of nationality should be taken, but that the worthiest candidate should be awarded. Gierow said that an unprejudiced examination of the candidates individual merits should be the first and essential basis of the decision and left it to the Academy to further deliberate on a prize to the Swedish candidates.[17]

In 1974, a shared prize to Eyvind Johnson and Harry Martinson was proposed by Johannes Edfelt, a member of the Swedish Academy.[16] Johnson and Martinson were also nominated individually by Pär Lagerkvist of the Swedish Academy and Johnson individually by three external nominators.[16] As three members of the Swedish Academy had recently died in 1974, and Johnson and Martinson themselves did not take any part in the deliberations, the prize decision for the 1974 Nobel Prize in Literature was taken by at most thirteen individuals. Member Anders Österling revealed that the prize decision was "very unanimous".[18]

For the 1974 prize, the Nobel committee shortlisted eight authors in six proposals, including three proposals for a shared prize.[19] The Nobel committee proposed that the 1974 Nobel Prize in Literature should be awarded jointly to Eyvind Johnson and Harry Martinson. The committee's second proposal was a shared prize to Nadine Gordimer (subsequently awarded in 1991) and Doris Lessing (awarded in 2007). Their third proposal was Saul Bellow (awarded in 1976), either awarded alone or shared with Norman Mailer, and their fourth proposal was Eugenio Montale (awarded in 1975).[20] Graham Greene, who had for many years been a candidate for the prize, were again also proposed by the committee.[19]

Committee chair Karl Ragnar Gierow listed Johnson and Martinson as his first proposal and argued that the two authors "from a strictly literary perspective are equal or ahead of several of those, who are now considered for a Nobel prize or have already received it", and again noted that denying authors from being awarded the Nobel prize because they are Swedish or members of the Swedish Academy had no support at all in the statutes of the Nobel Foundation.[19] Gierow's second proposal was Graham Greene, citing Greene's recent novel The Honorary Consul as a work that had strengthed his long standing candidacy, and Montale his third proposal.[19]

Committee member Artur Lundkvist strongly opposed that the Swedish Academy should award the Nobel Prize to its own members and urged Johnson and Martinson to not accept the prize, thinking it would make them unhappy. Lundkvist later said he thought the award brought the authors to a too early death.[21] Lundkvist advocated a shared prize to Gordimer and Lessing. No other objections against the proposal to award Johnson and Martinson the prize was noted within the Academy.[20]

Reactions

[edit]

The joint selection of Eyvind Johnson and Martinson for the Nobel Prize was very controversial as both were members of the Swedish Academy, the institution that awards the Nobel Prize in Literature.[22] Graham Greene, Jorge Luis Borges, Saul Bellow (awarded in 1976) and Vladimir Nabokov were favourites to win the award that year.[23]

The choice of Johnson and Martinson was heavily criticised by the press in their home country, mainly because the Swedish Academy awarded two of their own members. The most fierce critic, Sven Delblanc in Expressen, called it "a catastrophic decision" and said that the little credibility of the Nobel Prize in Literature that was left "would be wiped out with mockery, rolling around the world". He thought awarding the two academy members was a case of corruption: “There exists no strong international opinion advocating these authors. The choice reflects a lack of judgment by the academy. And lack of judgment in a serious context like this can only too easily be interpreted as corruption through camaraderie. Mutual admiration is one thing, but this smells almost like embezzlement.”[24] The choices was also attacked by some other younger literature figures, saying the authors had written their best works too far back in time and that neither had won any international reputation.[25][2]

According to research of press clips and letters sent to the Swedish Academy and Johan Svedjedals 2023 Harry Martinson biography, the negative reactions to the prize decision has however proved to have been exaggerated with one-sided focus on Delblanc's article and the negative reactions of Olof Lagercrantz. The contemporary reactions were rather mixed with several positive reactions both in Sweden and internationally.[26][27] In a survey in Svenska Dagbladet, a majority of the literary professors and authors called it an excellent choice.[26] Literature professor Thure Stenström said: "It is a triumph for all cultures good forces when an authorship such as Eyvind Johnson's is awarded. Harry Martinson is also an extraordinary worthy candidate. (...) Aniara alone would of course count as a merit enough for the Nobel prize."[26] Literature professor Gunnar Brandell said that the prize decision was likely to be criticized internationally; "But one can take that calmly. Those who know these prospected Nobel prize laureates works of course know that they each in their own way measure up well."[26] Swedish author and critic Karl Vennberg also favoured the prize and was quoted saying in the New York Times: “I find that if I myself had a Nobel Prize to give, I would have been prepared to give Harry Martinson one as far back as 1932.”[2]

International reactions generally focused on the fact that Johnson and Martinson were little known outside their home country, and were sometimes negatively or neutrally reported. Some of the international reactions were however much less negative than the Swedish reactions. The French newspaper La Nouvelle République said that Johnson and Martinson were "remarkable representatives of the modern Swedish literature and their work undoubtly deserve to be much known".[28] Positive reactions were also noted in Denmark, Norway, Finland, England and the USA. A writer in Times Literary Supplement wrote "That Martinson and Johnson are worthy recipients of the prize, few acquinted with their work would deny." In the same publication, the Swedish criticism was described as driven by envy of the same kind that several other successful Swedish persons had been strickened by.[29]

Personal reactions

[edit]

According to academy member Lars Gyllensten, both authors were badly affected by the negativity and criticism following the award. The sensitive Martinson found it hard to cope with the criticism following his award, and died on 11 February 1978 at the Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm after cutting his stomach open with a pair of scissors in what has been described as a "hara-kiri-like manner".[30][31]

Award ceremony

[edit]

At the award ceremony on 10 December 1974 in Stockholm Concert Hall Eyvind Johnson and Harry Martinson received their awards. At the ceremony Alexander Solzhenitsyn also received his 1970 Nobel Prize in Literature, after finally having been allowed to leave the Soviet Union. Solzhenitsyn's presence was much noticed in the Swedish press.[32]

Aftermath

[edit]

In his memoirs, published in 2000, former secretary of the Swedish Academy and Nobel committee member Lars Gyllensten justified the prize decision and claimed that it was well received by the Swedish public. The negative reactions in the Swedish press Gyllensten described as driven by envy and the Law of Jante. In the book Gyllensten claimed that Martinson's suicide in 1978 was a direct result of the heavy criticism led by Sven Delblanc in Expressen and Olof Lagercrantz in Dagens Nyheter.[33]

In September 2024, Sveriges Television premiered the one hour documentary Harry och Eyvind - Nobelpriset som förstörde allt ("Harry and Eyvind - The Nobel Prize that ruined everything") by Hanna Cedergren and Anders Lundgren, including archive footage and interviews with David Lagercrantz, (son of Olof Lagercrantz), and Harry Martinson's biographer Johan Svedjedal, among others.[34] In his 2023 Harry Martinson biography, Svedjedal devoted over twenty pages to the 1974 Nobel Prize in literature. Svedjedal concluded: "In the longer perspective the Nobel prize helped to further bring Harry Martinson and Eyvind Johnson to the world literature. But in the short and half-long perspective the prize was rather a pain for especially Harry. Even if many reactions [among the public] were positive he felt the negative so strong that nearly all happiness was ruined."[35]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ The Nobel Prize in Literature 1974 nobelprize.org
  2. ^ a b c "2 Swedish Writers Win the Nobel Prize". New York Times. 4 October 1974.
  3. ^ Karl Ragnar Gierow: Award ceremony speech nobelprize.org
  4. ^ Facts on the Nobel Prize in Literature nobelprize.org
  5. ^ Eyvind Johnson – Facts nobelprize.org
  6. ^ Eyvind Johnson britannica.com
  7. ^ Harry Martinson – Facts nobelprize.org
  8. ^ Harry Martinson britannica.com
  9. ^ "Eyvind Johnson Nomination archive". nobelprize.org.
  10. ^ Kaj Schueler (2 January 2013). "Eyvind Johnson ville inte komma i fråga för Nobelpriset". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish).
  11. ^ "Ledamotsregister". Svenska Akademien.
  12. ^ "Harry Martinson Nomination archive". nobelprize.org.
  13. ^ a b c Johan Svedjedal Min egen elds kurir. Harry Martinsons författarliv, Albert Bonniers förlag 2023, p. 628
  14. ^ Kaj Schueler (2 January 2023). "Nobelpristagaren ansågs stödja terroristerna". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish).
  15. ^ Lars Gyllensten Minnen, bara minnen, Albert Bonniers förlag 2000, p.272
  16. ^ a b c d "Nobelarkivet–1974" (PDF). svenskaakademien (in Swedish). January 2025. Retrieved 3 January 2025.
  17. ^ "Särskilt yttrande av Nobelkommiténs ordförande 1973 (pdf)" (PDF) (in Swedish). Svenska Akademien.
  18. ^ Johan Svedjedal Min egen elds kurir. Harry Martinsons författarliv, Albert Bonniers förlag 2023, p. 610-612
  19. ^ a b c d "Särskilt yttrande av herr Gierow (pdf)" (PDF) (in Swedish). Svenska Akademien. 6 June 1974.
  20. ^ a b "Sekretessen lyfts om priset "som förstörde allt"". Aftonbladet. 2 January 2025.
  21. ^ Peter Lennon (28 December 1980). "Why Graham Greene Hasn't Won A Nobel Prize and Solzhenitsyn Has". Washington Post.
  22. ^ Örjan Lindberger "Människan i tiden. Eyvind Johnsons liv och författarskap 1938–1976" Bonniers 1990, pp. 445–447
  23. ^ Raúl Fain Binda BBC Mundo (1 January 1970). "BBC Mundo – Noticias – Londres 2012: el cruel destino del atleta que llega cuarto". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  24. ^ Örjan Lindberger Människan i tiden: Eyvind Johnsons liv och författarskap 1938-1976 Albert Bonniers förlag 1990, p.455-457
  25. ^ Örjan Lindberger Människan i tiden: Eyvind Johnsons liv och författarskap 1938-1976 Albert Bonniers förlag 1990, p.455
  26. ^ a b c d "Populärt val - men principiellt fel?" (in Swedish). Svenska Dagbladet. 4 October 1974.
  27. ^ Svedjedal, Johan (2023). "Nobelpriset (1974)". Min egen elds kurir. Harry Martinsons författarliv (in Swedish). Albert Bonniers förlag.
  28. ^ "Mottagandet". Svenska Akademien.
  29. ^ Svedjedal, Johan (2023). Min egen elds kurir Harry Martinsons författarliv (in Swedish). Albert Bonniers förlag. p. 622.
  30. ^ Hansson, Anita (31 August 2000). "Martinson begick harakiri" [Martinson committed hara-kiri]. wwwc.aftonbladet.se. Aftonbladet. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  31. ^ Gyllensten, Lars (2000). Minnen, bara minnen [Memories, just memories] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Albert Bonniers Förlag. ISBN 91-0-057140-7. SELIBR 7150260.
  32. ^ "Solzjenitsyn på besök i Stockholm 1974". Svenska Akademien.
  33. ^ Gyllensten, Lars (2000). Minnen, bara minnen (in Swedish). Albert Bonniers förlag. p. 272-275.
  34. ^ "Harry och Eyvind - Nobelpriset som förstörde allt" (in Swedish). SVT Play.
  35. ^ Svedjedal, Johan (2023). Min egen elds kurir - Harry Martinsons författarliv (in Swedish). Albert Bonniers förlag. p. 630.
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